Dark Angel
by NephyRiddle
Summary: PreHBP Harry saves the lives of Snape and Malfoy, finds out he's Salazar Slytherin, and Dumbledore makes him spend the summer with the the two Slytherins. Not long after that, he's thrown back in time to the Marauder's era. Semidarkish with some laughs.
1. Salazar Slytherin

**Warning:** Very Dark fic; Includes: suicide, cutting, and swearing…possibly more (though in a minimum, in my opinion). If you've got a problem with the rating, please tell me before reporting my fic.

Oh, and just up front to limit the questions: **This is not slash**, not because I don't like slash but because I can't do romance. Which means probably no pairings at all.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter One: Salazar Slytherin**

Harry Potter sat on the cold, wooden floor of his bedroom, the bedroom that had always been but his cousin's second bedroom, staring at the wall with unseeing eyes. They told him Sirius's death wasn't his fault, but how could it not be? He had lead Sirius right to his death; just like Cedric. The nights were the worst. During the days, Harry managed to pretend, to forget; to live as if it had never happened. During the nights, the pain overwhelmed him, making him want to scream, to cry out; to do something to release pain inside.

He had cried silently at night, wishing for Sirius to come back, but it never helped. He had destroyed Dumbledore's office, but the rage and pain didn't go away. Harry eyed the dagger that he hid in his trunk, for emergencies. Slowly, he lifted the dagger to his arm and drew it across his skin, watching the sharp metal glide; slicing the skin. Harry watched in a detached sort of fascination as blood welled up and poured out of the wound; slid off his arm onto the wooden floor below him. His arm throbbed slightly, but it was a distant feeling and one that he deserved.

He had never appreciated how beautiful the crimson liquid was. Any time he bled, he always hurried to stop the flow or get out of the situation that caused it. He now saw that it was red; not bright Gryffindor red but a beautiful, deep red. He bled for Sirius, for Cedric, for all the innocent people that Voldemort killed. So many deaths, all his fault, but he was finally paying for them.

The groan of springs from Dudley's bedroom brought him back to reality. Silently, he crept across the hall and into the bathroom. He carefully washed and bandaged the cut, before taking a rag and cleaning the blood off of the wooden floor of his room. Harry picked up the still bloody dagger, and crept back into the bathroom to wash it off.

For a brief moment, a beautiful silver dagger, quite long and inlaid with emeralds, came into focus in his mind's eye. He nervously rubbed his scar, but it was calm; not a twinge. Sliding into bed, he concentrated on clearing his mind before drifting off into sleep, his emotions peaceful for the first time since Sirius died.

_Harry was standing in the death chamber, watching the veil sway gently. He heard voices muttering, but was unable to make out the words. The mutterings grew louder, and all of a sudden, Harry could understand them._

_"You killed me! It's all your fault!" Sirius hissed, stepping out of the veil, "I hate you! Did you ever really care, or were you just trying to get me to hand myself over to Voldemort?"_

_"No, Sirius, I would never…" Harry started, but Sirius cut him off._

_"Liar! It's all your fault, and you know it!" Harry hung his head; knowing the truth behind Sirius's words._

_"Why did you kill me?" Cedric asked, stepping next to Sirius, "You're famous, Harry, what could you gain from my death? Was it because I beat you in that Quidditch match? Do you still hold that grudge?" Tears started to build up in his eyes, however hard Harry tried to hold them back._

_"It's your fault we're dead," his father said, stepping out of the veil with his mother, "We died to protect you and you lead all these people to their deaths! You disgust me!" _

"_No! Mom, Dad, I didn't…It wasn't my fault!" The tears fell now; leaking out of the corners of his eyes and streaming down his face. Voldemort's victims stepped out of the veil, one by one, all of them blaming him, accusing him..._

_The surroundings swirled and dissolved, leaving behind a completely different scene. A circle of black robed figures, whose faces were hidden behind white masks, surrounded two figures. One of the figures was tall, with a pale, snake like face and glowing red eyes. Harry's heart sank as he realized where he was. _

_He frowned, his moment of despair vanishing with his confusion; he shouldn't be here, not with the amount of Occlumency walls he had put up. He had managed to trick Snape with false memories; he should have been able to stop whatever this was. _

_Harry bit his lip, searching for patterns between the nightly visions. He was only ever dragged here when there was a full meeting, which was usually once or twice a day, although he had seen countless meetings when Voldemort had only called a handful of Death Eaters; back when Harry hadn't yet had his Occlumency shields strengthened to the point that they were at now._

_So far, he had had six 'attacks' during the day time, four of which had pulled him into full meetings. The other two he had fought off long enough to stay conscious. The attacks made him severely dizzy and nauseous, yanking on something in an almost Portkey like fashion and sending jolts of Cruciatus-like pain through him for a few minutes, unless he passed out first. Well, whatever they were, he was sure that Voldemort wasn't pulling him into the visions on purpose. He didn't even seem to realize that Harry was at the meetings, and Harry was sure that they were genuine. _

_Actually...before Harry had strengthened his Occlumency shields, he had come here to the Death Eater meetings and such through Voldemort, so deep inside of his twisted mind that they were one and the same. Now, Harry had a weird, spirit-like sort of form. He could see through himself, but he couldn't walk through things, even though he couldn't move anything. Another thing that was new was that Harry could now feel all of the curses Voldemort cast, albeit weaker._

_He wasn't completely helpless this way, either. Although it took a great amount of energy and often left him exhausted the next day, not to mention the pain was as bad as a hundred Cruciatus curses, Harry usually managed to pull together enough energy to transport one person every meeting to safety; in this case, the Hogwarts infirmary. He wasn't sure exactly how he did it, either; he just concentrated on where he wanted to go and how he needed to go there, to safety. He suspected that the absence of a body helped the process a bit; something to with the lack of physical boundaries. Harry didn't know how he knew all this either; some hidden knowledge or instinct imbedded deep in his subconscious that seemed to make itself known when he was desperate._

_Shaking his head, Harry returned to the present, studying the person facing Voldemort. Harry recognized him instantly, it was Draco Malfoy. But what was Malfoy doing here?_

_"So, Lucius, you think your son could be of help to me?" Voldemort asked, with a hint of doubt coloring his snakelike hiss._

_"Yes, My Lord. He goes to Hogwarts and is very loyal to our cause," Malfoy senior said. Harry studied the younger Malfoy; his face was carefully blank, but his aura showed his fear and disgust. _So he doesn't want to be a Death Eater after all_, Harry concluded, _interesting_. Then he did a double take, _since when can I read auras?

_Blinking, Harry shook his head, putting off the new puzzle for later. So, Draco was being forced to be a Death Eater by his father? He didn't want to let that happen, but he wasn't sure that he had the power to pull a person to Hogwarts tonight; he was still so weak from the last night's torture._

_"Very well then," Voldemort turned to the younger Draco, "What would you do for me, child?"_

_Draco gulped, barely visibly, "I would spy on the Headmaster and help turn people to our cause. I will do anything for you and our cause."_

_Voldemort laughed, a high, unpleasant sound, "You have trained him well, Lucius. I ask you to perform a task for me, child."_

_"Yes, My Lord?"_

_"Kill a spy within our midst."_

_"Who, My Lord," asked Draco, and Harry knew that however cruel he could act, Draco would never kill a person. He needed to get Draco out of there, and fast. Wait a minute, Voldemort said spy, did that mean..._

_"Severus Snape, come forward." There were murmurings as the Death Eaters whispered amongst themselves as one of the masked men stepped forwards. "Quiet! Well, child, what are you waiting for?" Draco froze, wand in hand. _Shit, shit, shit, _Harry thought, mentally banging his head against a wall. He was out of options; he couldn't let either die, yet he didn't even have enough energy to save one! Harry knew that however cruel Draco could act, he wouldn't kill their Professor. Draco took a deep breath and turned to Voldemort._

_"I won't," he stated, glaring defiantly at Voldemort, his aura swirling with fear and defiance, "I won't do it!" Harry knew that he needed to get both Professor Snape and Draco out of there and fast. There was no choice, he had to try it. There wasn't enough time to do it one at a time, either. He needed them to get closer to each other and that left only one option; he needed to contact one of them, something that he hadn't yet tried with anybody. He chose Draco, as the younger Slytherin was less familiar with Harry's mind, never having used Legilimency against him._

_:Draco: He asked hesitantly, reaching out with his mind and trying to disguise his mental voice as much as possible. :Can you hear me? Don't answer out loud: He added hastily, seeing Draco open his mouth::You should be able to think things at me:_

_:Who are you: Asked a voice inside his head, and Harry discovered that hearing thoughts in his head that were not his own was a very odd feeling indeed._

_:Who I am is not important at the moment. I'm going to try and get you out of here, but you need to get as close to Professor Snape as possible; I need to get him out, too, okay:_

_:I can try: Draco thought a little doubtfully, his mental voice wavering a little._

_"Lucius, you disappoint me, I thought you said that he was loyal. Crucio!" The elder Malfoy screamed, falling to the ground; his limbs flailing. Harry winced, feeling the curse echo through his scar. He ground his teeth to keep from screaming and somehow managed to stay upright. Taking the opportunity, Draco lunged towards Professor Snape, grabbing his wrist._

_:Hold on: Harry warned, grabbing them both with his transparent hands and concentrating as hard as he could on the feelings of home and safety while imagining the hospital wing while trying to ignore a fresh wave of pain. Lights swirled around him and, if he was not being drained of energy and in the pain of a thousand Cruciatus curses added onto the extreme pain that he was already feeling through his scar, he would have been reminded strongly of a Portkey. _

_They landed in the hospital wing and, somewhere in the distance, he heard a clock chiming. Twelve times. And, all of a sudden, he was not in the hospital wing any more. His mind was flooded with memories that were not his own...but they were, somehow. He was drowning in a never-ending sea of memories…_

_He was raised by a mother and father...His father hated him and his mother ignored him for the most part, but his mother and father loved each other...He went to a school of magic…When he was seven, his father found out his mother was a witch and killed her... He was transferred to a different school…He met three great friends there, and they shared a dream of making their own school of magic...They managed to build the school and the next few years were peaceful...He started having heated arguments with his best friend...He started cutting...His best friend accused him of corrupting the school and banished him with the help of his other friends...He committed suicide that day, his sixteenth birthday..._

Harry Potter woke up, his mind still submerged in memories that he knew were somehow his own, a lifetime ago. Harry giggled weakly, on the verge of being hysterical. So, Harry Potter was Salazar Slytherin; the light's mascot was one of the evilest wizards in the history of wizardry.

He frowned, a fresh wave of grief washing over him. That was what everybody saw him as? He remembered Godric's final remark as if it was yesterday, which, to him, it was; remembered Helga and Rowena looking at him with disgust and hatred; remembered his friends, his only family, banishing him from the home that they had built together.

The pain and hurt was suffocating him as tears leaked town his face and fell to the ground. He had nobody, really. Salazar had nobody, and whoever Harry had didn't care for him. To his relatives, Harry laughed bitterly at the word, he was a freak, something that they didn't want but couldn't get rid of. The man who Harry had always looked up to as his closest thing to a grandfather had manipulated and lied to him. To him, Harry was only a weapon. Harry's best friend was jealous of him and saw things in pure black or white; he would never understand the subtle shades of grey that filled Harry's life. Harry's other friend saw just the facts she found in books (which were often incorrect) and could only think logic. How could he make her understand that, sometimes, life didn't make sense?

Harry escaped the only way Salazar knew how. Taking the dagger out of the trunk, Harry drew the blade across his arm again and again, watching the blood flow. He didn't slit his wrists, though; he wasn't going to try that again just yet. The sun crept across the floor, and Harry snapped back into the present. He quickly cleaned the floor and bandaged his new cuts, realizing that he would have to wear a sweatshirt to cover his arms, even if it was a hot day.

Glancing up at the mirror, Harry froze, gaping. A pair of huge, black wings were attached to his back; four streaks of white feathers running through the black. How he had not noticed them in the first place was a mystery, as was how they somehow managed to slide _through_ his shirt without damaging the material. As he snapped his mouth shut, he noticed a pair of sharp fans among his teeth. It was only then that he noticed that, though he wasn't wearing any glasses, his vision was clearly focused; even better than they had been before. He hadn't noticed it at first because Salazar hadn't needed any glasses. _Why do these things always happen to me?_ Harry wondered. As far as he knew (and he knew an awful lot), normal people, or even wizards, didn't sprout wings and fangs on their sixteenth birthday, for that was what today was.

Staring at himself, a paragraph from a book that Salazar read floated through his head. _Angels are a type of elf. They are innocent creatures have the elves' purity and pointed ears. Unlike normal elves, angels don't get their powers from their parents. Nobody's sure how they come to be, but their parents can be humans or any other animal. Not much is known about angels, as the last sighted angel was hundreds of years ago. It is said that they have all sorts of magical powers, but nobody is sure quite what they are. To break an angel's innocence is said to be a sin worse than killing a unicorn. When that happens, the angel's wings turn black; they grow pointed fangs and are called dark angels..._

Harry just blinked in shock. He was an angel? And a half dark angel, at that? He checked his ears. Yup, he had pointy ears all right. He wondered what 'all sorts of magical powers' meant. _Yeah, that's just what I need_, Harry thought, his mental voice oozing sarcasm, _to have something that makes me more special. Why can't I ever be normal?_

How was he going to explain this, anyways? What would the Daily Prophet say if they found out that he was a dark angel? Harry winced as he imagined the headlines. No, he would definitely need to hide this.

Harry folded his wings all the way, but they still stood out obviously. He tried everything he could, and was getting desperate when the wings disappeared. Harry blinked, wondering if it was something he did, or if it was something that happened on its own. His fangs and pointy ears were still there, though.

_Just go away_, Harry thought, frustrated, and, to his very great surprise, they vanished, leaving perfectly normal teeth and ears. Harry blinked again. _Come back_, he willed them, and they did. Harry grinned; no wonder angels were never seen!

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Severus Snape was not a happy man. At the moment, he was feeling particularly worthless, as he had been discovered as a spy the night before. The students had left for summer holidays and, after enjoying the deserted castle for a couple weeks, the professor had just begun to absentmindedly pack up all his rare potion ingredients to take to his house for the rest of the vacation, when there was a popping sound and a house elf appeared in front of him.

He would have groaned, if he was one to do such childish things as groaning. Instead he scowled at the vial of phoenix tears he was packing and ignored it, knowing that if it had something it wanted, it would tell him eventually, just as he knew that Dumbledore wanted him to do another outrageous task just by looking at the elf. Sure enough, after a moment of silence, the house elf spoke up.

"Professor Snape, sir, Professor Dumbledore is asking Bopple to ask Professor Snape to do errand for Professor Dumbledore," the house elf squeaked, looking nervous. The professor's scowl deepened as he wondered what crazy errand Dumbledore wanted him for this time. He still remembered the traumatizing incident when he had to visit a Muggle sweet shop when the last jar of Dumbledore's favorite sweets went missing. Shuddering, Snape prayed to whoever was listening that Dumbledore didn't need any more sweets.

"Yes?" Snape asked, impatiently.

"Professor Dumbledore wants Professor Snape to pick up Harry Potter from his relative's house tonight and have him in Professor Dumbledore's office by noon," Bopple said very quickly, waiting for the explosion that came whenever Harry Potter was mentioned. He was not disappointed.

Snape just looked blankly at the elf for almost a full minute until what the Bobble had just said registered. Then came the inevitable explosion,

"WHAT? WHY CAN'T-WHY DO I HAVE TO PICK UP THAT SPOILED BRAT?"

"Professor Dumbledore is telling Bopple that Professor Snape is the only one free. Professor Dumbledore is insisting that Professor Snape do it," Bopple said, cowering a little.

"Fine," Snape snarled, knowing that this was one of Dumbledore's plots to make him and Potter get along, but also realizing that he had no choice, "tell the Headmaster that I'll pick up his golden boy." With that, he jammed the vial of phoenix tears into the padded box and stormed out of the room; deciding to check on Draco before picking up the brat. It was only ten o'clock anyways, he still had two hours.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

So, what do you think? I've got the first chapter up and the second chapter is nearly finished…

You know, it's really encouraging for authors if you review…Just a suggestion…

Anyways, I'm open to suggestions and corrections.


	2. A Visit to Diagon Alley

According to a rule that I recently found out about, we are not allowed to reply to reviews in our fics. Bummer. Since I had only heard rumors about this rule before and, though I checked in the rules, I found nothing so I allowed myself to have a few nice chats through reviews that I've now had to get rid of out of fear for my fic and all the pretty reviews. Anyhow, I'll be answering questions which reviewers brought up and that I feel are important right here. I don't believe that this counts as review responses, just answers to general concerns that I don't want brought up again and again.

_Will Snape and Draco find out that Harry was the one that saved them? Will a friendship form?_

_Yes, eventually they find out that Harry was the one that formed and there will definitely be a friendship of some type between them._

_So Harry is a dark angel? Or half? What kind of power does he have? Are you going to explain what sin he has committed because I don't grasp this one…So, are Harry and Snape going to have a relationship Father/son, friends, mentor, apprenticeship…? Please explain why Salazar is now Harry…it's because about the suicide or something?_

_Harry is half dark; he hasn't turned completely dark yet, I've got too much angst planned for him for that (evil grin). As an angel he's connected to the earth, so his powers revolve mostly around nature but I'm not saying anything else yet. Harry didn't commit a sin; it's the people who stole his innocence who committed the sin, get it? I haven't really decided Snape's and Harry's relationship, because it changes…mentor/friend/father-son. Harry being Salazar doesn't really have an exact reason yet; something about him being an angel and killing himself on his birthday or something._

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Two: A Visit to Diagon Alley**

"Why isn't he awake yet?"

"Apparently whatever's doing this didn't have enough energy to bring both of you here by itself. Somehow, it used Mr. Malfoy's magic to boost its own and transport the pair of you to the infirmary."

"And we have no idea who or what is doing this?" Meaningless sounds washed over Draco Malfoy as he slowly returned to consciousness, wincing at the bright light in his eyes. He tried to ask where he was but couldn't form the words, so it came out as a sort of moan. "Draco? Can you hear me?" The voice sounded vaguely familiar, teasing at his brain, which didn't seem to be processing information properly at the moment. He felt his mouth pried open and an overly sweet potion poured down his throat, a murmured spell causing him to swallow it. It seemed to give him more energy, and he opened his eyes to see Professor Snape standing over him.

"Professor?" He managed to rasp out, "Where are we?"

"We're in the Hogwarts infirmary," Snape replied, his tone neutral.

"Why-" He started to ask hoarsely, but as he spoke the memories of the night before came flooding back to him in a sudden, nauseous wave. "Oh," he said quietly, and then stronger, "Who was that?"

"We're not sure. For the past couple of weeks, victims of the Dark Lord have been disappearing and re-appearing it the hospital wing. We don't know who or what is doing it at present but are working on finding out."

"He spoke to me," Draco muttered, as much to himself as to anyone else, as he considered this new information.

"What?" Snape asked sharply.

"He told me that he was getting us out of there. He said that I needed to get close to you for it to work." Draco said, "Hasn't he talked to anyone else?"

"Not that I know of," Snape said, looking thoughtful, "Are you sure it was a male?"

"Pretty sure. He sounded familiar, but wouldn't tell me who he was when I asked."

"You asked? How did you do that?"

"He told me to direct thoughts towards him."

"He's a telepath then, and apparently quite a strong one. That would explain how he managed to use your magic." The professor thought out loud, "I need to tell the headmaster about this before I do his errand." He had a look of distaste on his face; whatever his errand was, it seemed to be quite a nasty one. With that, he swept out of the room, leaving Draco with a lot to think about.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Harry felt a tingling as he left number four, Privet Drive. Swearing under his breath in Parseltongue, a habit that he had picked up from his time as Salazar Slytherin, he turned to see a shimmering, multicolored dome, a huge basket woven out of hundreds of threads of magic. He had completely forgotten about the wards surrounding the house. Not that he could have done anything about them if he hadn't; the wards would tell Dumbledore if he used any magic, wandless or not.

Reaching out with his wandless magic, something he had learned in his past life, Harry prodded at the dome, adjusting it until he was sure that the wards wouldn't report to Dumbledore until around ten o'clock; the latest that he could put it off as weak as he was from transporting two people the night before. He had plenty of time until Dumbledore noticed. Finding his guard, Mundungus Fletcher, Harry cast a small sleeping spell on him and obliviated away the last few minutes.

Smirking at the poor security – if he could break out this easily, how long would it take Voldemort to get in? - Harry walked down the street. He had quickly found that his shapeshifting wasn't limited to wings, fangs, and ears. He had grown his hair out, made it lie flat, changed its colour to every hue that he could think of, made himself taller, changed his skin colour, changed himself to a girl (he hadn't actually expected that one to work), covered his skin with feathers and then with scales, changed his voice, un-fixed and re-fixed his eyesight, changed his scent (well, he thought he did; it was sort of hard to tell), and (getting braver) changed into a phoenix, dragon, lion, cobra, and flamingo. The animals were all black and silver with green eyes and black and white wings, unless he specifically pictured it a different colour. No matter what he did though, he couldn't change the color of his wings without giving himself a completely different set altogether.

His hair was now flat and shoulder length, the way he had worn it as Salazar, and his once-emerald eyes were now silver with no glasses hiding them. He couldn't get rid of his scar, but managed to move it a little, hiding it under his hair. He changed his voice and scent too, as he wasn't yet sure that the rumor that werewolves had excellent senses was true or not and was _not_ going to let himself be caught over something as trivial as that.

Harry had also made himself a little taller and slightly adjusted his facial structure, as if he didn't one of his friends would probably recognize him if they happened to see each other. As an extra precaution, he manipulated his aura a bit, making it seem less powerful and hiding the magical signature for a few of his rarer abilities such as Parseltongue. Only very powerful wizards could read auras but, even though the knowledge of aura reading was said to be long lost and very dark magic, he was sure that Dumbledore and Voldemort possessed both the skill and the knowledge to do so and was not going to take any chances. Though he was pretty sure that Dumbledore had a way to read auras, Harry was sure that Dumbledore didn't use the actual spell and was interested to see how the headmaster did it.

The student was stumped as to how he had managed to read Draco's aura the night before, but vaguely remembered reading a book on the subject about a thousand years ago; spells that someone learned were never truly forgotten, not even with the use of extensive memory charms, the knowledge of the magical patterns needed to use the spell were merely locked away unless the person was in need of them. The same presumably went with his teleportation skills. Teleportation was a type of apparation that allowed you to bring more than one person and was considered dark magic because it, like all other 'dark' spells had a price that went beyond fatigue; in this case, pain.

Contrary to popular belief, using dark magic and being a dark wizard did not make you evil. Dark wizards were wizards who used dark magic: spells (or potions) that the ministry banned or discouraged. The one characteristic that linked all dark spells was that they all commanded great power at a price, most being able to inflict considerable damage in some way. The ministry, however, had classified many other spells and potions as dark for political reasons, such as ones that were often used to violate one's privacy. Evil wizards, like Voldemort and his Death Eaters, used these magics for evil, and most evil wizards used dark magic, presumably because of this power.

Harry smiled suddenly. His 'family' had left for the day and it really was a perfect opportunity to pick up a couple of things. He really did need to get some new clothing and was eager to learn some spells and potions that hadn't been around in Salazar's time. Even though Dumbledore would probably let him visit Diagon Alley briefly or have someone buy the necessary supplies for him, Harry did not want to be watched, especially since he was planning a short visit Knockturn Alley.

When he was quite a distance away from Privet Drive, Harry flagged down the Knight Bus. Stan stepped out of the bus and began his speech.

"Welcome to the Knight Bus-"

"Yes, yes, that's all very nice, but I'm in a hurry," Harry interrupted, grabbing Stan's hand and shoving a couple of Galleons into it, "Just take me to Diagon Alley." Striding past Stan, Harry, guided by Slytherin paranoia, chose a small seat near the door that was blocked by a massive armchair. He could easily see who was coming and going, but they would have to look closely to see him. He didn't see anybody worth noticing by the time that the bus got around to Diagon Alley, but such alertness had saved his life many times as Salazar.

Nobody gave him a second glance in the Leaky Cauldron or Diagon Alley. At the beginning of the week, Harry had asked Dumbledore for some money; after all, anything might happen. Dumbledore, trying to get back on Harry's good terms, had sent Harry a small bag that would give him as much money as he needed; wizarding or not.

Harry's first stop was Madam Malkin's, and, when nobody was looking, he quickly willed himself back to normal size - it wouldn't do to get robes that wouldn't fit him when he returned to his usual form.

"Can I help you?" the girl behind the counter asked.

"Yes, I need Hogwarts robes, potion making robes, dress robes, casual robes and" he paused, "you wouldn't happen to have any battle robes, would you?"

"No sir, I'm sorry, we don't; not very many people make them any more. There are probably a few stores beginning to stock them now, although I don't know of any around here."

"Oh, well, I have plenty of time to look around," Harry said, somewhat disappointedly. Much later, he left the shop, staggering a bit under the weight of all of his purchases. He shrunk the bags wandlessly when nobody was looking and stuffed them into his pockets. He had almost forgotten to remove the charms on the moneybag that sent information to Dumbledore on his withdrawals and purchases, but had remembered to do it quickly before he paid for the clothing.

Walking out of the store and back into Diagon Alley, Harry internally debated over what to do next. After deciding that he would need a better trunk, Harry found a small luggage store fairly easily. After all, he had spent a couple of weeks in Diagon Alley three years ago and therefore knew his way around pretty well.

Harry pushed open the front door, causing a little bell over it to ring. The shop smelled of leather and was filled with all sorts of trunks, each as interesting as the last. Harry wandered around, reading the tags; it was amazing what some of the suitcases were capable of doing.

"Is there anything in particular that you're looking for?" A man whom Harry could vaguely remember seeing sitting behind the counter asked, coming up behind him. The teenager considered this for a moment before replying.

"Hmm...Well, I'd like something that has a lot of room...a hidden compartment would be nice...yeah, something big where I could hide stuff..." Harry decided, remembering that he would probably need to hide a couple of things from his roommates when he got back to Hogwarts, but trailed off, not sure of what else he would need, "but not much of an idea apart from that. Actually, I guess I have less of an idea than I thought I did."

The man laughed, "That's fine; a lot of people come in here with no idea what they want at all. So, a hidden compartment? How big do you need it to be?"

"I'm not sure...Hey; do you think that you have something that I can brew potions in? I don't have much room at home, and I'd rather not spend much extra time in the potions classroom; I don't like the teacher very much." Salazar loved potions, and had taught it at Hogwarts before he had been forced to stop, a couple of weeks before his banishment...A lump formed in Harry's throat and he swallowed, forcing down the tears. The man must have noticed Harry's sudden depression, but kept quiet.

"Well, we could think about one with a hidden room. If you're planning on brewing potions in it, we'll have to find a fixed room; one that doesn't move around if you move the trunk. That means that you can't move it while it's open, though. That could be your hidden compartment, but then you'd need another room, too, or the fumes from the potion might ruin whatever you're keeping in there. We have a couple of trunks that'll open to a room or two like that if you touch a certain place and say the password."

"Err...right, that sounds good, where are they?" Harry asked.

"Right over here," the man said, leading Harry over to a couple of trunks, "for most, like this one, you can choose a room size and add anything you want to it. This one though, already has a room and furniture in it. Although this particular one is not of much use to you because it's a living room and there's really no place to brew potions..." But Harry wasn't listening; he was looking at a trunk tucked away in a corner.

It was dark green with silver fastenings and was decorated with silver snakes, but, unlike the other trunks in the store, it had Helga's magical signature. Harry's breath caught in his throat. It couldn't be; what would it be doing here? But it was: there, behind some bright pink trunks was his old suitcase, the one that Helga had made him for his birthday before his fifth year (When he turned twelve. Back then, children started magical education when they first showed signs of magic. In Salazar's case this was when he was eight, which was quite young, and there were only six school years, although students were usually apprenticed to someone after they graduated). Helga had noticed how ashamed he had been of his cheap things; he didn't have much money after his mother died.

The kindly witch had enchanted the hidden compartment to have anything he needed, although it was all an illusion. You can't bring something that came from there out of there, and you can't survive in there, because food, and everything else that appears in there, is all an illusion.

Now that he thought about it, of course the Room of Requirement was Helga's secret room (every founder had a secret room hidden somewhere in the castle; it was a game they played, to try and guess where each other's room was); she had always liked helping people when they needed it, even if the room was only full of illusions. _Was our friendship an illusion, too, Helga?_ Harry asked silently, _did you only give it to me because you saw how desperate I was for acceptance?_

Helga's rejection had, surprisingly, hurt almost as much as Godric's. Helga had always been loyal to her friends, and never believed nasty rumors about them, even when all evidence pointed that way. What had changed? When had Helga's loyalty been lost? The tears came back and he fought them down forcibly.

It was his fault, he knew; his fault that his friends had turned on him. He shouldn't have kept so many secrets from them, but he did, afraid of their rejection. They had been patient with him, but eventually it was too much. A single tear made its way past his defenses and landed on the floor. That jerked him to the present, and he noticed the shopkeeper standing quietly, studying him.

"I'm sorry," Harry whispered, the lump in his throat came back, and he cleared his throat before continuing, "That trunk reminded me of a friend. We had a big argument and I left. I can't go back, though, and there's no way to communicate with them."

"Sometimes, the best thing to do is forgive and move on with life," the shopkeeper replied wisely, "but who am I to say, my job is to make and sell trunks, I'm no philosopher."

"Thanks" Harry said, "For listening to me, I mean. Can I get that one?" He asked, pointing towards his old trunk.

"I'm afraid that that trunk isn't going to be of much use to you. There's a mighty powerful locking charm on it, and I can't get through it."

"It doesn't matter," Harry said, smiling at the trunk, "I'll take it anyway. How much does it cost?"

The shopkeeper studied Harry for a minute,

"Just take it."

"What?" Harry asked, "I can't do that! I've got enough money to pay for it, whatever the price is."

"No, no," the shopkeeper said, "I couldn't take any money for it; I've got enough money as it is. It's worthless to me anyway, but it obviously means a lot to you. Just take it." Harry was reminded of the time that he had given the Triwizard winnings to Fred and George.

Struck by a sudden inspiration, Harry asked, "How much would the trunk be, just out of curiosity?"

The shopkeeper looked at him warily, as if he expected Harry to find some way of leaving him the money if he told Harry the price,

"Around a hundred galleons."

"Then I'm giving that money to St Mungo's," Harry stated, "Thanks for all your help." Harry left the store smiling, leaving a thoughtful storekeeper behind. That young man had been odd. He was obviously suffering, grieving even, but he was still so innocent. But how long would children stay innocent at a time like this? That dark thought haunted him for the rest of the day, casting a dark cloud on the happy, sunny day, which suddenly seemed false. How long would this happiness last?

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Harry finished haggling with the man behind the counter of a bookshop and shrunk a humongous bag of books, putting it in his pocket. He hadn't gotten anything else; he thought that he had better check what was in his trunk before buying more. He had managed to get many new books, on both light and dark magic, though he had had to step into Knockturn Alley for the latter.

Harry's final stop for today was Ollivander's. It would be nice to have another wand, as many things could happen to a wand, particularly if a dark lord wanted your head on a plate. Putting on a nervous face and willing himself to look much younger, Harry walked into the store.

"Good morning," Said a quite, calm voice from behind him. Harry did his best to pretend to jump; he had heard Ollivander walking up. Turning around, Harry came face to face with the proprietor of the shop.

"Is this the place we're supposed to go to get wands? I'm Evan Silverstone" Harry pulled the name out of thin air and tried his best to sound confused and lost. It apparently worked, for soon Harry found himself measured by the tape measurer and trying out wands. Harry had tried out what appeared to be every wand in the store, and was getting very worried about getting back to Privet Drive on time. Even Ollivander looked stumped.

"You cannot get in here unless you belong or belonged to a wand here, Mr. Silverstone, but I do not know how to help you. The only way I can think of is for you to try to reach out with your senses. That is how I make my wands." Harry was suddenly nervous. He had bought his wand here, so maybe he didn't belong to any others in the shop. He tried to calm down and do what Ollivander said. The place was filled to the brim with the magic from hundreds upon hundreds of wands but there was the faintest pulling sensation coming from somewhere.

He stood there for a long time before he took a tentative step towards the door to the back room. Ollivander opened it, and Harry walked slowly to a small shelf. Harry took one of the many boxes off the shelf and picked up the wand inside. Looking at it, he gasped. It was his wand; the one that he had used while he was Salazar! Waving it, Harry was filled with a sense of rightness. He had his wand back! He was fully and totally himself again.

"That wand was destined for greatness, Mr. Silverstone," Ollivander said, "It was passed down in my family for generations, and has been waiting for its rightful owner. I cannot tell you what it's made of, for nobody knows, just as nobody knows where it came from. It is part of a set of four, and they are said to have bound destinies."

"That's a little weird..." Harry said, doing his best to keep up the illusion of cluelessness and not start skipping for joy. But three other wands…it couldn't be a coincidence, could it?

"Indeed it is, Mr. Silverstone, indeed it is..."

"May I see the other wands?" Harry asked, wanting to make sure.

"Of course," Ollivander took the three closest boxes off the shelf and opened them. The first wand was a warm honey color, the second a bronze-ish color, and the third a deep brown; Helga's, Rowena's and Godric's. There was no mistaking the wands; they had made them themselves, as was custom back then. They had gone into a nearby wood, much like the forbidden forest at Hogwarts, together to gather the necessary components

Harry's eyes burned and he fought back tears once again; he wanted to leave as soon as possible, but he couldn't just leave them there. _No_, Harry promised himself, _I'm going to try and find as many of our things as possible_.

"I…Is it possible that I can get those wands to?" Harry asked, trying to force his emotions behind a large wall of Occlumency. What had happened to his masks and self-control?

"It is illegal to sell a wand to someone who already has one," Ollivander said. Harry's hart plummeted and he wasn't sure what to do, "So that is why I'm giving them to you as a gift."

"But I couldn't, I mean," Harry said. Slytherin or not, he didn't want to just take something this valuable from another person; he did have certain morals, after all.

"Pay me by finding the rightful owners and giving the wands to them," Ollivander said. Harry took a deep breath, knowing that such a commitment would mean facing the other founders.

"I promise I'll try my best," Harry said, "How much does mine cost?"

A couple minutes later, Harry was walking back out the Leaky Cauldron. Glancing at his watch, he decided that he had time to get some Muggle clothes to wear underneath his robes and hurried off to find a store.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Snape apparated as close to the house as the wards would allow. He looked around, grimacing, as he took in the identical houses, all lined up in a perfect row. How could Potter stand to live here? _He probably likes it here_, Snape decided as he rung the doorbell, _he can probably move if he wants to_. He rang the doorbell again, noticing that the car was not in the driveway. Perhaps they had left for a while? But no, Potter was not allowed to leave the house. He rang it again impatiently, if nobody answered the door, he would leave. It wasn't his fault if Potter thought that he could break the rules.

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Thank you for all your kind words and generous reviews! I was completely shocked as so many reviews, and they really did make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside…as well as insanely happy-hyper.

Review? I love to hear all your opinions; it encourages me to write more.


	3. A Meeting With Dumbledore

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Three: A Meeting With Dumbledore**

Harry sat on his bed with the trunk in front of him.

-Open- He hissed, tapping one of the silver snakes decorating the suitcase. He really needed to think of a more original password now that there was another Parselmouth around…

Harry heard a lock click and opened the trunk, eyes brightening as he peered inside. The first thing he saw was a pile of battle robes. They were made with dragon hide and, as he discovered upon quickly trying them on, they still fit perfectly. There was also Salazar's two favorite wand holsters and an assortment of other little things that had once been important to him.

He was slightly disappointed to discover his favorite daggers were not there. Two of them were long enough to be considered short swords really and the other three were weighted throwing knives, their tips covered in basilisk poison. They were silver and inlaid with emeralds, and had been what Salazar had used to kill himself all of those years ago.

Harry was snapped out of his musings when he heard the doorbell ring. He cursed under his breath (in Parseltongue of course); he should have noticed someone approaching the house. He knew that if that had been a Death Eater, he would be in trouble. Harry didn't have very much faith in the wards centered on blood/love magic; he knew that Voldemort shared his blood now, so he could probably get in if he wanted to.

He smirked; that type of magic was, or at least used to be, considered dark magic, as it often involved a sacrifice of some sort. It might not be any more though, as love could hardly be considered dark and it involved a willing sacrifice. Still, the thought of the Head of the Order of the Phoenix using such magic was an amusing one to say the least.

A second ring interrupted Harry's thoughts and he reached out with his magical senses to see if it was anyone he knew as he crept soundlessly down the stairs. Matching the magical signature with people he knew, he was unpleasantly surprised to find that it was Professor Snape.

Harry disliked the professor; he knew that Snape had a reason to dislike him, even if it was based upon narrow-mindedness and prejudice, but that was no excuse for the professor's treatment of him. The way that Snape had attacked his mind was wrong and uncalled for; if Harry hadn't discovered a way to shield certain memories, Snape could have found out some very private information (Harry had developed a completely different type of Occlumency, where he put up shields of fake memories surrounding real ones. He knew that Snape didn't expect him to learn Occlumency and he didn't want to do anything else that made him special, so he hid his personal memories behind fake ones. When Snape stumbled across a memory, he saw something completely different from what flashed through Harry's head).

On the other hand, Salazar knew that there were few people better qualified to teach his Slytherins than the Death Eater turned spy. Harry blinked and shook his head. Not his Slytherins, dammit, _the_ Slytherins! They weren't his any more!

Back to the matter at hand...It was very possible that Dumbledore had noticed that Harry was outside of the wards in the few minutes extra it took to get back. It was also very possible that Dumbledore sent Snape to try and make them stop fighting. Harry rolled his eyes. _Goodie_, he thought sarcastically, _just what I need to cap off my great day._

Harry hastily checked that his appearance was back to normal and his glasses were on while making sure his magical signature was appropriately masked. Once sure he was ready, Harry opened the door just as the doorbell rang again.

"Hello Professor Snape," Harry said, as sweetly as he could without making his voice higher pitched than could possibly be natural, "Would you like to come in?"

Snape scowled, he had hoped Potter would gape for at least a minute, but he almost seemed to expect him. But then again, Potter had appeared to know who he was before he even opened the door. Snape put the question aside for a minute; he had other things he needed to deal with at the moment.

"Potter, get your things," Snape snapped, irritated that Potter didn't even have the foresight to make sure that he was him instead of a Death Eater in disguise, "The Headmaster is moving you somewhere else."

Harry just shrugged and headed upstairs, shoving everything in the trunk for sorting later. He put Hedwig's cage in the room of the truck (Hermione had borrowed his owl at the beginning of the holiday) and headed back downstairs, stopping in front of Snape.

The potions master frowned at the trunk: it seemed familiar but he couldn't remember…He concentrated, but it danced at the edge of his memory, teasing him.

"Where are we going, Professor Snape?" Harry asked, pulling up his Gryffindor mask, smile and all.

"Hogwarts, the Headmaster wants to see you," Snape said, noticing Potter's smile falter slightly, but chalking it up to imagination or an early onset of the mental instability that spending any time in the boy's presence was likely to bring about.

Harry, meanwhile, was panicking silently. He had an excuse to get inside the wards but he wasn't sure if they would be reasonable, after all, they reflected the founder's personalities and Harry was sure that they wouldn't be at all happy to see him. Well, there wasn't much he could do.

"How are we getting to Hogwarts, Professor?"

"We need to get out of the wards surrounding the house, and then I will use the Portkey that the Headmaster gave me to get to the castle. We'll walk to the school, as the wards have been modified to exclude Portkeys." The walk out of the house was silent, Harry's happy energy replaced by dark brooding, although Professor Snape didn't seem to notice the sudden change. They apparated right outside the Hogwarts wards and Snape started walking to the castle, not seeming to notice Harry's hesitation.

:You: The first ward that noticed him was the lion::You're not allowed here, leave: Behind the lion stood a badger and an eagle circled overhead like a bird of prey waiting to swoop, which, of course, it was. Salazar didn't have a ward as he had been the original need for such protection. The other founders had assigned them to watch him, though they were banned from Slytherin territory. The lump in his throat reappeared, and, once again, he was forced to fight back tears.

:The Headmaster invited me and I am accompanied by a professor; I'm allowed in.: Harry stated as calmly as he could, using mindspeech.

:The Headmaster is manipulative and sly, he does not hold the wards to this school.: The eagle stated. So, the wards had already rejected Dumbledore? Interesting…Harry bit back a comment, knowing that if he stated his dislike of Dumbledore, the wards could say he was a threat and use that as an excuse to get rid of him.

:Nevertheless, the Headmaster is still the Headmaster of this school, and, even if he no longer holds the wards, he controls them, to an extent.: Harry said, keeping to facts, knowing that they couldn't reject him. The lion opened its mouth to reply, but a phoenix landed on Harry's shoulder, interrupting him.

:I, Fawkes, phoenix familiar of Godric Gryffindor, invite Salazar Slytherin, now known as Harry Potter, into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, giving him temporary entrance through the wards.: Fawkes chirped formally. Even the stubborn wards couldn't deny Harry entrance after that; they sulked off to continue prowling the castle.

As he crossed the wards, Hogwarts, the ward-spirit that was Hogwarts, greeted him with a sort of magical/mental equivalent of a hug. As he felt the magic wash over him, he gave a small smile. Hogwarts herself had always been with him, always believed him.

"Potter, quit dawdling!" Snape snapped, not having noticed anything.

"Sorry, sir, Fawkes was just saying 'Hello'," Harry said, thankful that the phoenix had rescued him, even if _she_ was Godric's familiar. :What are you doing here:

:Godric left me behind to watch the castle and keep it safe.: Fawkes replied as Harry started to walk towards the castle. :Which was hard to do after your heir set your snake on the school, I might add.:

:That man is no heir of mine: Harry hissed:: He may bear my gifts, but that does not make him my heir. As for Serphenia: he paused, narrowing his eyes against the wave of pain that slammed through his soul::Tom Riddle will pay for turning her against me.:

"Potter, hurry up!" Snape snapped, pulling open a door and disappearing inside the castle. Harry hurried after him, struggling a bit with the heavy door, and ran up the marble staircase and after Snape. He got there just in time to catch the gargoyle before it closed and sprinted up the spiral staircase to catch up with his teacher.

"Severus, Harry, come in," Dumbledore called through the door, and Snape pulled it open, not bothering to open the door for Harry, who managed to slide through it. Hatred swelled up at the sight of the Headmaster but Harry caught it quickly, pushing it behind the sturdy Occlumency walls he had managed to construct.

"Hello Professor Dumbledore," Harry said in the same sickeningly sweet tone he had greeted Snape with. Suddenly noticing the person sitting in one of the chairs in front of Dumbledore's office, he continued, "Greetings Malfoy." He cursed inwardly; he had nearly called Malfoy (for that was who he was, now that his father was no longer present as well) Draco, and that would have been a big clue to their mysterious rescuer, the kind of clue that would be roughly akin to attaching a large neon sign to his head that said 'yes, I did save his life'.

Harry's eyes traveled around the room; it had been Godric's once. He studied Draco for a minute and did a double take at a small symbol in his aura. Draco Malfoy was the reincarnation of Godric Gryffindor? But they looked completely different: Godric had reddish-brown hair and amber-brown eyes. Harry looked at the aura, studying the symbol, not that he had any experience with that particular sign, but it seemed…dormant. Did that mean that the student didn't remember being Godric?

Noticing that his eyes had been on Draco for a little too long, Harry tore his gaze away, his eyes wandering about the room again before falling on Godric's sword. Should he take it? He had promised to try and get all of their things, but did he dare? Reinforcing his Gryffindor golden boy mask with a look of awe, he gaped at the sword.

"Wow," he said, letting his hand hesitate over the sword, asking silently for permission from both Dumbledore and the sword. Finding no answer, he tentatively let his hand rest on the sword for a minute before picking it up. Bright red rubies glittered from the gold handle, and it looked highly polished.

His eyes stared burning again; being in Godric's office and actually holding his sword, not to mention sitting close to his reincarnation with his familiar perched on his shoulder, released a tide of memories that Harry didn't particularly wish to consider. It took all his willpower to force those memories and the depression behind his Occlumency walls and keep up his masks.

"I mean, I saw it before and all, but I was kinda distracted and…wow!" Harry repeated, trying his best to look clumsy with the sword, like someone with no experience with sword fighting.

"Take it, Harry. It looks like it was meant for you, anyway," Dumbledore said, eyes twinkling. Harry bit back a snarl at Dumbledore's use of his first name and Snape snorted. Being an excellent sword fighter himself (most purebloods were), he knew that Harry was holding the sword all wrong and had a hard time believing that the sword was 'meant for' Harry. Harry turned towards Dumbledore, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"What do you mean, Headmaster?" Harry said with the barest hint of a snarl in his voice, "Are you hiding anything else from me?" He was having a hard time making his Gryffindor mask angry, as he needed to keep the anger relatively mild compared to Salazar's blazing fury.

"Well, Harry, since you've become of age, magically, I can tell you!" Dumbledore said, acting as if he was giving Harry the greatest gift in the world, "You two," he paused, almost dramatically, gesturing towards Harry and Draco, err, Malfoy, "are heirs of Hogwarts!" Harry fought the urge to raise his eyebrow, but instead put up a well-measured mask, made up mostly of surprise and confusion.

"We're whats?" Harry asked, annoyed at the Gryffindor mask he had to wear. He already knew of course: he had helped design the relevant wards and enchantments, the ones that chose the 'heirs'.

"Every once in a while, we're not sure the exact date, an heir is chosen from each house to act as the heirs of Hogwarts, although nobody is quite sure why the Slytherin heir still exists after the founder was banished. The sorting hat picks them, but I managed to convince the sorting hat to tell me years ago." Harry bit back his glare with great difficulty: the sorting hat wasn't supposed to tell anyone but the heirs themselves. Then again, the sorting hat was also supposed to be impartial and it had been broadly hinting that Slytherins were evil for quite a while now.

"Slytherin was banished?" Harry asked, looking puzzled.

"The founders realized that Slytherin was corrupting the school and banished him. After that, they tried to get rid of the Slytherin house and heir but found themselves unable to."

"Pity," Harry said under his breath, for the sake of his Gryffindor mask. Dra-Malfoy and Snape glared at him and Harry was having a hard time keeping his masks up; hearing everything like that pulled a lot of memories through the Occlumency shields.

"Anyway, this year, we have quite an unusual situation. Harry, you were originally going to be the heir of Slytherin," Harry did the best to look shocked, while both Snape and Malfoy looked stunned, "but, since you didn't want to, and the sorting hat was designed so it couldn't go against direct thoughts like that, he was put in Gryffindor.

"The place for Slytherin heir went to Draco Malfoy, who was originally meant to be the heir of Gryffindor," Snape and Malfoy simultaneously choked at that and Harry pretended once again to look suitably shocked, "so we had a bit of a mix up. You two were made a sort of half heir of each house." Harry couldn't take it any more; he started laughing. He laughed so hard he fell down, and started rolling on the ground, howling with laughter.

"Any idea where I can get my life fixed?" Harry choked out in-between hacks of laughter, "Whoever's in charge of it messed around with it a bit too much, and now the controls are broken. One of the levers is stuck somewhere in between drama and angst, while the irony button is stuck all the way pushed in. Can I have a refund? Could I get a new one if I ask nicely enough? I'd go after the person who gave me this one, but I don't remember who it was." _And of course my last one was just as screwed up…I should have gotten a refund…or at least a medal…_

"You will, of course, need to attend a ceremony to accept the positions, in the Great Hall, on Halloween." Dumbledore continued as if he had never been interrupted. By now, Harry had stopped laughing and had managed to pick himself up from the floor.

"In front of everybody?" Harry asked, pretending to be nervous. He knew that wasn't a real requirement, but couldn't really bring himself to care.

"Yes, of course." Dumbledore replied, eyes twinkling, "And these new powers seemed to have had an adverse effect on the wards on Privet Drive. I'm afraid that I need to move you somewhere else."

"As interesting as this conversation is, I have potions to pack and Draco needs to find somewhere to stay," Snape cut in, impatient to get out of the Headmaster's office and Potter's company.

"I'm sorry but your presence will be required here for a little longer, Severus." Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling like crazy. Snape had a bad feeling about this: Dumbledore's eyes twinkled like that when he was about to do something really crazy. Harry seemed to sense it too as he stopped laughing abruptly, looking around at the group with what seemed to be dread.

"No," he muttered, "He wouldn't…Oh, never mind, he would…Oh, I can't believe it, that-" At this point the boy seemed to realize that he was thinking out loud because he stopped muttering abruptly, blushing slightly, though of course it was all fake.

"What, Potter?" Malfoy and Snape snapped at the same time.

"Think about it. First thing to remember is this is _Dumbledore_ we're talking about. Then remember that Dumbledore wants us all to get along. Then remember that, apparently, both Malfoy and I need a place to stay this summer, and Dumbledore wants Sn-Professor Snape to stay here for the remainder of the conversation. I think you can put them together yourself." Harry explained, shooting a (relatively mild) glare at Dumbledore at the end of his speech. Malfoy looked horrified and Snape was looking ready to kill the aged Headmaster.

"Indeed." Dumbledore said, "Severus, I need someone to look after both Mr. Malfoy and Harry this summer. You are the only one with nothing to do during the holidays and the protection provided by your wards will be more than sufficient. You don't have as many responsibilities anymore; surely you can manage to look after two boys." The threat of taking away further responsibilities lingered in the undertone.

"Fine," Snape snapped, "What do I need to do?"

"Oh, nothing much…Just make sure they're well cared for, that they have their school supplies by the beginning of the school year, and that they make it to the train station on time," Dumbledore said.

"I can take in Draco, but Potter? I won't look after that spoiled brat," Harry was amused, but pretended to be offended, "can't Lupin? The Weasleys? I'm positive that there are swarms of people who would be more than willing to take care of your golden boy!"

"Severus," Dumbledore warned, "Remus is still grieving, and the Weasleys are busy, along with everybody else. Besides, your house has some of the strongest wards in Britain."

"Fine! Draco, Potter, be in the Entrance Hall in an hour," Snape snapped, robes billowing behind him as he made to leave the room.

"Wait Severus, one last thing," Dumbledore called, before Snape left the room, "I'll need you to continue teaching Harry Occlumency while you have the chance."

"WHAT?" Snape and Harry burst out at the same time. Harry's action was, of course, faked, but he knew Dumbledore expected it.

"I don't have time to deal with that brat! I have things to do," Snape shouted, glaring at Harry.

"I thought…Professor, didn't you say that it was a mistake to make him teach me? Please don't make me!" Harry practically wailed, quite proud of the mix of desperation and anger that he managed to project.

"Severus, I'm sure that you will be able to find the necessary time and Harry, I know that it was a mistake last time, but situations change and it's the best we can do at the moment," Dumbledore said, his voice obviously trying to be soothing. Snape turned and stalked out of the room, the office door slamming darkly behind him.

"I thought you weren't going to manipulate me any more," Harry said sadly.

"Harry…" Dumbledore seemed to be at a loss of words; Harry had to admit to himself that he was a remarkable actor, "I'm only trying to do what's best for you."

"I know, but…why do I have to do this with Snape of all people? I mean, we hate each other," Harry said, sniffling and wiping away faked tears.

"I'm sorry," Dumbledore said, "But on a brighter note, I'm proud to give you these." He said, pulling two badges out of his desk: those of the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain and of a Prefect. Harry internally grimaced at the obvious attempt to win his trust back. He looked at them for a minute, studying the way that the sunlight pouring through the tall windows glinted on the reddened metal, before turning back to his Headmaster.

"I'm sorry Professor, I couldn't," Harry said, "I'm probably going to be even busier this year than last year, even without the OWLs. Anyway, aren't prefects chosen in our fifth years? And I couldn't possibly train the Gryffindor team, now that you tell me that I'm representing two houses...Or play." He pretended to look worried, "Do you think it will be alright if I play on the Gryffindor Quidditch team?"

"I'm sure that it will be fine," Dumbledore said quickly. Harry internally smirked; the headmaster wanted the Gryffindor Quidditch team to win as much as McGonagall, which was saying a lot. "Very well then," Dumbledore said, putting the badges back in his desk. Harry noted Malfoy studying him and ignored it best he could. He hated it when people stared at him. They were quiet for a while, each waiting for the others to start the conversation.

"So Professor Dumbledore, the sword's mine?" Harry asked, impatient to get away from everything remotely Gryffindorish.

"Of course, Harry," Dumbledore said.

"Okay, good bye then," Harry said, standing up and walking to the door after putting the sword in the 'trunk' part of the trunk, which was now disguised with a couple of illusion charms, "Err, I meant you to, Fawkes." Harry said, trying to get the phoenix off his shoulder, but she wouldn't budge. "Uh, Professor, he won't get off." And he had to pretend that he thought Fawkes was a boy! He fought the urge to roll his eyes, and Fawkes chirped angrily.

"I think Fawkes wants to stay with you right now," Dumbledore said in an amused voice, his eyes twinkling.

"No!" Harry said; he did _not_ want Godric's phoenix following him around! "Professor, don't you need him to send letters and stuff?" Harry asked, still trying to dislodge Fawkes, whose talons were digging painfully into his shoulder.

"But this all works out!" Dumbledore exclaimed, "Fawkes can keep you out of trouble!"

"Not bloody likely," Harry muttered; scowling at the bird perched on his shoulder. :If I kill you, it's all your fault.: He warned the phoenix mentally.

:I'm immortal: Fawkes reminded him::You _can't_ kill me.:

"Fine, I'll take him," Harry said, scowling, "Bye then, Professor." Harry turned and walked out the door, his feet taking him towards the Chamber of Secrets; Salazar always went there when he was upset. Noticing Malfoy following him, Harry headed towards the dungeon entrance, planning to lose him in the dark corridors.

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So there's chapter three, earlier than planned, but whatever; I'm sure you don't mind!

**About Wards and Mindspeech**

Wards:

Wards come in different types, like the type at Privet Drive or the ones at Hogwarts. The Privet Drive ones are like anti-Apparation wards; they just stop people from doing things (in that case, Apparation doesn't work to, in, or from Hogwarts). The animated types are the very, very old fashioned types. Animated ones each have an animal after which they take shape. Non-animated ones are simple and dome shaped.

Animated ones aren't really wards, though, more like keepers of wards. They control the wards and the general magic in the house and don't have any more abilities than from the non-magical (even though there is no such thing; everything has at least some magic, but here I mean with lower levels of magic, so normal or Muggle) animal who's form they take. They are, however, made of magic, so only aura-seers can see them.

So a lion ward is basically a normal (though intelligent) lion who guards a place and can't be seen by anyone apart from aura-seers because he/she's made up of magic. They can also lead people around the area they're guarding, and have access to secret passageways, as they control the magic of the house.

Hogwarts herself is a ward-spirit, a different branch of the animated types of wards. Some houses have them, but only very magical homes have ward-spirits. Ward-spirits don't have a form, but are made up of the magical energies in a very magical place. They are sort of…not exactly vague, but not exactly primitive or childish. They are a sort of general sort of personality…you'll see what I mean. It's impossible to hold a conversation with one, but they can send you a feeling of comfort if you're sad or something.

Spirits:

First of all, Harry could talk to Draco in the 'dream' because he was a spirit (meaning not in his body and not a ghost). Spirits can occasionally communicate with the living (even though Harry was living, he wasn't in his body at the moment, so that sort of counts). Being an angel helps to. Angels are elves, after all, and are in tune with nature, sometimes able to call upon the elements and talk to animals (with mindspeech). Humans are animals, anyways.

Harry could talk to the wards because wards, as animals, can use mindspeech. All animals can use mindspeech to communicate to each other, but there are limits. Though humans are animals, humans have become very different, so only certain humans can communicate to animals. Wards, created by humans, can contact any humans that can see them. Yes, Harry can, but only in certain circumstances, because he's an angel. The really magical animals are easiest, like phoenixes. Fawkes being a familiar helped a lot, because he is/was connected to a human. And of course, Parseltongue is a gift that allows him to understand and speak the snake language, and is completely different.

A bit confusing, I know, but that's how I figure it…

Reviewing is really encouraging to writers, you know…


	4. Talks With Slytherins

_Is Harry going to get a snake?_

_Yes, Harry probably is going to get a snake eventually but not any time soon._

_Are there going to be any pairings in this story?_

_I feel there are many stories that are better off without romance, so I'm not going to try. Plus, I probably couldn't write it even if I did try._

_If Fawkes stayed with Harry, does that mean Godric and the others forgave him after he killed himself? And if Harry is the heir of Hogwarts why didn't the wards want to let him enter?_

_It means that within a thousand years there was enough doubt there for Godric's familiar to let him inside the wards. Though note that the wards that protected the school from him and other dangers were still there and would not let him in. Harry may be the heir of Hogwarts but the wards aren't Hogwarts or an extension of Hogwarts herself. They are merely protections set up individually by the founders and their main purpose was to refuse him entrance and that was enough to let them bypass any loyalties they were supposed to have towards an heir. _

_Will Godric remember his past?_

_Yes, Godric will remember…eventually._

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Four: Talks With Slytherins**

Exiting the Headmaster's office, Draco wondered what he was going to do with the extra hour. Noticing Potter walking off, he decided to tail him to see where he was going, even if it was just to the Gryffindor common room. To his surprise, Potter led him down to the dungeons.

Suddenly, Potter's path twisted and turned, although he gave no sign that he noticed being followed. Potter cut through secret passageways and abandoned potion labs to a whole new part of the dungeons that Draco had never heard of, let alone seen.

:So, Fawkes: Harry said mentally to the phoenix perched on his shoulder, as he made his way down to the chamber, trying to lose Malfoy, though not very hard::what exactly happened after I left:

:The other founders looked for your Chamber, afraid that it might be an unknown entrance to the castle, but they never found it. They tried to get rid of Slytherin house, but Hogwarts wouldn't let them, so they tried to take over the house; it went completely out of control after you left.

Slytherin rebelled against the head of house they set, until one of your graduated Slytherins stepped in and got them under control. That started a tradition of the head of house training an apprentice to take over the house after they die. Slytherin…Well, nobody was quite sure how they chose their head of house, but it seemed to work out.

Godric left soon afterwards, leaving me to look after the castle. Helga left next and Rowena soon after her. Eventually, everybody moved on with only me to remember them: Fawkes said sadly, while Harry continued to make his way down to the Chamber, filing away the news mentally.

Harry stopped suddenly, pretending that he was taking a break. He really didn't want to go to the Chamber, it would bring back to many memories he wasn't willing to face. Already, just being in the castle, especially in this part of the dungeons, was pulling memories out of his Occlumency shields.

"So, Malfoy, why are you following me?" He asked casually, leaning against the wall; remembering the time that Godric had tried to find his way around the Dungeons, getting himself so thoroughly lost that he could barely tell up from down…Harry firmly pushed that thought away, not wanting to be caught in the other memories that it would bring.

Draco was startled when Potter addressed him, Slytherin pride bruised at having been noticed. How had Potter noticed him? Draco convinced himself that he had just been careless, not expecting a Gryffindor to notice being followed.

"I was merely wondering where you were going," Malfoy stated haughtily.

Harry shrugged, "Just wondering around." They were silent, each unwilling to be the first to speak.

"So, Potter, what are you doing in the dungeons?" Malfoy finally asked, having grown impatient.

"I could ask the same of you," Harry said with a smirk.

"I'm a Slytherin," Malfoy said, using the tone that one would use to explain something very simple to a child, "The dungeons are Slytherin territory."

"Really? I hadn't noticed," Harry said, watching Malfoy quickly become frustrated.

"How did you ever make it through your classes Potter, with observation skills like that?" Harry just gave him an annoying grin and headed off in another direction. When he was safely turned away from Malfoy, he let the smile fade, while mentally berating himself. He had almost forgotten who he was speaking to, almost thought that he was annoying Godric, as he had loved to do before the argument. "Where are you going?" Malfoy asked, annoyed that Harry would just walk away from him.

"Out of here. We have," Potter checked his watch, "thirty two minutes to get back to the Entrance Hall." Draco huffed and turned to leave, but froze, realizing that he was in a completely unfamiliar part of the dungeons, and if Potter, who seemed familiar with the area, left, he might not be able to make it back for hours, possibly days. Angrily, he turned back to face Harry.

"Well, I'm not finished with you yet." He said, following Harry. Harry cursed in Parseltongue under his breath, knowing that Malfoy couldn't make it out on his own, but wishing that he would leave him alone. They walked in silence for a while.

"Well, Malfoy, you wanted to say something?" Harry asked, annoyed.

Draco sighed, knowing he would regret this for the rest of his life. There wasn't anything else he could do, anyways.

"Truce, Potter?" Draco asked; sticking out his hand. Potter stared at it for a while, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Why would I want a truce with you?"

"We're living together for a month, we can't continue arguing."

"Look, Malfoy, you've made my life miserable for five years. I don't care if we're living together, there's no way in hell I'm going to make up with you," Harry hissed angrily.

Draco was taken aback by the sudden hatred in Potter's voice. What had happened to Dumbledore's golden boy? Deep inside, he was hurt a little by Potter's words. It was illogical, they had never been friendly before, and Draco was confused at his own reaction.

"I'm sorry, you have every reason to hate me," Malfoy said, dropping his arm back to his side. With those words, Harry looked up and saw, not Godric (not even Gryffindor, as Godric had become after the argument) or Malfoy; he saw Draco, an insecure boy who needed people to care for him, much as both Salazar and Harry had been before meeting people who cared.

"No, I don't," Harry said, "I judged you too quickly, with too many prejudices," he extended his hand, "I'm Harry Potter, nice to meet you."

"Draco Malfoy, you can call me Draco," Draco said, smiling and taking the offered hand.

"Only if you call me Harry," Harry said.

"Deal," Draco said, "but what are you doing in the dungeons, Harry?" Harry studied Draco for a moment, unsure if he should tell the truth. What he saw made up his mind. Draco had dropped his masks, showing, whether consciously or subconsciously, he trusted Harry enough to do it.

"I was visiting the Chamber of Secrets," Harry said, starting to head out of the dungeons.

"Oh," Draco said, blinking, "It's down here?"

"Sort of; it's somewhere under the lake, but there's an entrance down here," Harry said, not mentioning that that wasn't the one that he had used in his second year. All the school knew was that he and Ron had rescued Ginny from the Chamber.

"Why were you going there?"

"I was visiting. I mean, the last time I was there, I didn't have much of an opportunity to look around…"

"Oh." They walked in silence for a while, not uncomfortable, just thoughtful.

"What did Dumbledore mean when he said Snape had fewer responsibilities?" Harry asked, curiously.

"Well, he isn't a spy any more and Dumbledore fired Severus from his head of house duties, said he 'wasn't in touch with the students' or something like that, because he didn't think that the students would listen to Severus, now that they know he's a spy. He's afraid of a revolt." Draco spat angrily.

"What? He can't do that!" Harry switched to Parseltongue and started swearing furiously. Didn't these people learn from their mistakes? That would cause a revolt, not prevent one!

"Uh, not to be rude, or anything, but why do you care?" Draco asked, a bit confused by the sudden change in attitude.

"I know enough of Slytherin politics to know that that'll cause huge problems between Slytherin house and Dumbledore," he continued raving in Parseltongue, for a minute, "To answer your unasked question, that's Parseltongue. I use it too swear, because no one else can understand, except snakes and Voldemort." Draco stared.

"The golden boy swearing? How often does that happen?"

"More often than most people think," Harry said, taking a deep breath and hissing for another few minutes, "Okay, I think I'm done." They reached a painting of a huge, black snake.

-I'd tell you to watch your mouth, if you didn't have so many amusing things to say about the Headmaster,- the snake hissed.

-Yes, well, he deserved it,- Harry said, blushing, -Can you let us through?- The painting swung open, revealing the Entrance Hall.

"Has that always been there?" Draco asked, amazed.

"Yup," Harry said, grinning, -Thank you, I'll see you when the school year starts.- The painting swung shut behind them. He checked his watch again, "Only another minute or two."

"Potter, what are you doing with the Headmaster's phoenix?" Snape asked, coming up behind them.

Snape glanced casually at Potter's trunk, and had to stop himself from doing a double take. Hadn't it been green and decorated with snakes? Now it was just a normal brown trunk with no unusual features. Now that he thought about it, what was Potter doing with a trunk that screamed 'Slytherin'?

"Fawkes deemed it necessary to come with me and the Headmaster seemed to think it was a great idea," Harry said, scowling at the phoenix, "Stupid bird."

:I happen to be a very smart bird: Fawkes chirped offended, ruffling her feathers.

"Yeah, of course, you're the smartest bird in the world, what was I thinking?" Harry asked sarcastically, "After all, dumb birds never get into fights with their reflections."

:That was a long time ago: Fawkes chirped, sounding embarrassed.

"Not that long ago," He saw Snape and Draco staring at him, "Want to hear a story? Once upon a time, there was a phoenix who…"

:No! Shut up: Fawkes squawked angrily::Don't you dare:

"Leave me alone, then!" Harry said, angrily.

:No:

"A phoenix who was…"

:This is blackmail:

"Why of course, my overgrown chicken," Harry said, smirking evilly. Fawkes flew off his shoulder, talons digging rather hard into his shoulder.

:I still have to stay close; Dumbledore did send me to watch you: Fawkes chirped indignantly.

"Fine, fine, just leave me alone pigeon," Harry grumbled, clutching his shoulder with his free hand, "And that bloody hurt, stupid bird!" he muttered as his hand came away from the wound slightly bloody, "Sooo, are we going?" He asked the still staring Slytherins.

"Potter, what was that?" Snape asked.

"Fawkes wouldn't leave me alone, so I had to threaten h-him," he hoped they didn't notice his near slip, but it was hard to remember Fawkes was supposed to be a boy.

"Threaten him? Rather Slytherin of you," Snape commented. Harry had to laugh at that.

"If you say so," He said, still snickering. Snape obviously didn't know how to reply to that.

Dammit! _Gryffindor mask on at all times! _Harry's mind yelled. He should have brought them all the way back on when he talked to Draco in the dungeons or, at least, when Snape showed up. He knew that Snape would eventually report back his behavior to Dumbledore. He knew that Snape would only tell what Dumbledore needed to know, he was a Slytherin after all, but Snape, as the Head of Slytherin, would have to be very good at looking through masks.

Because of the wards Salazar had set, to last more than a year as Slytherin Head of House, you had to a) have been a Slytherin yourself, b) be loyal to Slytherin house, and c) be able to look after the Slytherins properly. Salazar was no fool; he had noticed that less than one out of a hundred abused children didn't get into Slytherin and every Slytherin was abused at home or, at least neglected. He had designed the house so that the Slytherins worked together and supported each other. No other house could support an abused child properly; just look at how Harry had turned out as a Gryffindor!

Salazar had been careful warding his dungeons. They welcomed, housed, and protected any Slytherin child. As soon as you graduated, unless chosen as the next Head of House by the wards, a subtle blend of memory charms and wards kept graduates from remembering it as anything other than a series of politics, and prevented anyone from telling another about it.

As the Head of Slytherin, Snape would have to be able to care for the other Slytherins, especially the younger ones. He would have to be able to break through masks and make sure that the Slytherins didn't keep everything bottled up.

Harry changed his laugh into less of a 'you just said something really stupid, but you don't know it' snigger to more of a 'that's so absurd its funny' laugh. Salazar had quite a lot of knowledge with different types of masks, and Harry knew that he would have to use every ounce of that knowledge he possessed to keep the Slytherin Head of House from realizing that there was a mask at all. It would be difficult, but Harry was ready for the challenge. Besides, Snape wouldn't be looking for a mask; Harry was a Gryffindor, after all.

"Me…a…Slytherin," Harry choked out between laughter, "That's…more…absurd…than," He paused a moment to think, gasping for air, "Draco being a Gryffindor." Well, actually it wasn't, but it was fun to make jokes behind their backs.

"Draco? Since when have you been on first name terms?" Snape asked, although not showing any curiosity through the calm Slytherin mask he always wore. He wasn't the Slytherin Head of House for nothing; he had noticed the subtle change but ignored it, not expecting a Gryffindor to know so much about masks.

"Since…" Harry thought about it, "for about twenty minutes? Half an hour? Actually, since it was thirty-four (or was it thirty two) minutes ago that I said that we should get back here…"

"We declared a truce," Draco answered the question, since Harry didn't seem to be doing it.

"Really?" Snape drawled somewhat incredulously.

"Yup!" Harry said; his Gryffindor mask cheerful. After all, according to his reckoning, he'd be happy to get out of Privet Drive and, even if he was with Snape and Malfoy (as his Gryffindor self would call him). Snape didn't really have very much authority over him after all; no houses to deduct points from, and no detentions, although he might have to do chores. But, hey, after doing Aunt Petunia's housework as long as he could remember, a couple of chores didn't really matter.

Snape looked at him, somewhat disgusted by the hyperactive energy that radiated from him, "We're going to walk out of the Hogwarts grounds and then apparate to my house. Do you understand that, Potter?"

"Of course, Professor, but I can't apparate," Harry said, feigning ignorance.

Draco sniggered,

"What; fail your apparation test?"

"Actually, I didn't even know that there was an apparation test…" Harry said, "I do wish they'd stop doing this; it's getting quite annoying." He did not specify as to who 'they' referred to and neither Draco nor Snape asked.

"I will be apparating all of us, Potter," Snape said, "Even Draco, as the wards surrounding my house probably won't let him in." _Now that's interesting_, Harry thought, you could only do a group apparation if you have very strong magical energies; at least the aura reading amount. Snape's aura looked about normal, if not a bit strong. Something must either be masking it or amplifying it.

"Really? I didn't know you could do that!" Harry exclaimed, putting on a perfect look of wide eyed surprise, although perhaps a bit childish.

Snape mentally cursed at his slip, "You are not to tell the Headmaster that bit of information, Potter."

"You mean he doesn't know?" Harry frowned as if thinking hard, "Why not?" This was an interesting turn of events. Harry now had some information that Snape didn't want the headmaster to know. He wasn't going to tell, of course, but, if he played his cards right, he could drop his masks for the rest of the summer. But did he want to? It would be almost impossible to hide behind masks near the Slytherin Head of House, but did he want Snape knowing his secrets? No, he was keeping his masks up for as long as possible, though he did plan to lower them a bit.

"Talents like that are best kept secret. They may save someone's life someday," Snape said, "Don't tell anyone, not even Granger and Weasley." It wasn't the best excuse, but Harry let it slide. He had no reason to pry, and it wouldn't do to make the Professor annoyed this early in the summer.

"Whatever," Harry said, "Lead the way, I guess." Snape frowned at the order but left the Entrance Hall, robes billowing behind him. The walk out of the grounds was silent, nobody really wanting to speak to the others. They walked across the grounds and along the path that the school carriages usually used. When they got to the gates, Snape stopped.

"You must be standing close to me, or you might get lost in the process," Snape said, his expression showing how much he would love to get rid of Harry like that. Fawkes swooped out of the sky.

:You can't leave me behind: She chirped.

"You can fire travel," Harry said, annoyed.

:Yes, but I don't know where we're going: Fawkes replied.

"Fine!" Harry snapped, "But don't hold on so tight, you're hurting my shoulder." Fawkes landed on his shoulder (his uninjured one), as unhappy as Harry was about the assignment.

"Potter, why do you pretend that you can understand the phoenix?" Snape asked, annoyed at the one sided conversation.

"Maybe I can," Harry said, shrugging.

"Impossible. Humans can't communicate with animals," Snape said. Harry had to fight down the eyebrow that he so wanted to raise, a decidedly un-Gryffindorish movement.

"I can talk to snakes."

"Parseltongue is a language. You're speaking English."

"Fawkes can understand English."

"Animals can't understand human languages,"

"How do you know?"

"There have been studies."

"Fawkes understood Professor Dumbledore's order to look after me."

"Fawkes is familiar-bound to the Headmaster." Harry fought back a laugh at that. So that was what the old fool was telling people?

"Hedwig can understand me."

"Do you really believe that?"

"Yes."

"Then you are a fool."

"Call me what you want, I stopped caring years ago."

"Why do you believe that Fawkes can understand you?"

"Because he can."

"What proof do you have?"

"Buckbeak the Hippogriff attacked Draco when Draco insulted him."

"Coincidence."

"Believe what you want, Professor," Harry said, "Are we going or not?"

"Then keep your childish illusions, Potter," Snape said, "Are you ready, Draco?" After an affirmative answer from Draco, Snape Apparated them away; the same way Harry used to get Voldemort's victims away from the meetings. Just as they were leaving, a lion roared in the distance, but it was soon drowned out by a waterfall like roaring that filled their ears as they were pulled away in a swirl of multi colored lights.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Reviews are really, really nice things to get…And they help encourage writers to write more…Just thought you ought to know…


	5. Places of Memory

_When will the two Slytherin-house Slytherin realize that Harry is Slytherin-Slytherin?_

_Not for many more chapters, unfortunately. _

_Why would Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw banish Slytherin?_

_More on this subject comes up later, but you have to remember that there was lots of mistrust between the houses at this time, especially Gryffindor and Slytherin. It just all became too much._

Top of Form

Bottom of Form

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Five: Places of Memory**

The swirling lights vanished suddenly, and Harry, Draco, and Snape were left on an open field between a huge house and a forest. Draco was leaning over and looking sick. Harry turned, saw the house, and choked, beginning a violent coughing fit. Even Fawkes seemed slightly sick, giving a weak chirp before flying off again. Snape alone seemed unaffected by the travel, just a bit pale, although Harry's coughing fit had started, not by the way of travel, but the large house looming over them.

"Th-that was the way…" Draco trailed off, still looking rather pale.

"Yes, it was, although I'm not sure how he learned it. It's an ancient form of travel, said to be long lost. It's also dark magic, which, if Dumbledore knew, would make his side in this war questionable," Snape said. Harry, who, up till that point, was pretending to be confused, suddenly looked revolted.

"That-that _thing_ was dark magic?" Harry asked, "You used dark magic? And…What are you talking about? Who's side in the war?" Snape and Draco ignored him.

"And the price?" Draco asked.

"Pain," Snape replied shortly. Draco looked worried.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Draco," Snape said, although Draco (and Harry, though he pretended not to) could see him gritting his teeth a little, a large sign of pain for one so experienced with masks.

Draco opened his mouth again, but at that moment, a large, slightly transparent, snake floated out from the grounds. Harry closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath. That made it definite, this was, or at least used to be, Slytherin Manor. The snake stopped when she saw Harry.

-Welcome home, Lord Slytherin,- the snake hissed respectfully.

-How many times have I told you to call me Salazar? No, this place is not my home. This place is for everyone who needs it, not just me. For it to be my home would be a curse, for every place I have ever called my home has suffered,- Harry said with a sad smile.

-You home it may not be called, but your home it still is,- the snake replied.

-Ther,- Harry said, calling her by her nickname, rather than her real name Thermuthis, after an Egyptian goddess, -I have never owned the place and, if I did, the place now belongs to him.- He gestured towards Snape.

-Here is still your rightful home,- she told him stubbornly, coiling herself around Harry. She was quite a large snake, and her body hung on his shoulders, twisting around his torso quite a few times.

"Err…Harry, who's your, um, friend?" Draco asked, looking nervous.

"Draco, you can see it to?" Snape asked. Both Draco and Potter...That meant that they both had the power to be aura seers, and aura seers were _extremely _powerful. He knew Potter must be able to see it because he wouldn't be able to hear it otherwise.

"This is Ther, short for Thermuthis," Harry said. He was shocked that both Snape and Draco could see her, but hid it well. After all, he wasn't supposed to know anything about wards, "She's a girl, by the way."

-And I don't like to be referred to as an it,- She hissed, annoyed. Harry laughed.

-Would you rather he checked to see if you were a boy or a girl?- Harry asked, amused.

-You know what I meant!- Ther said, embarrassed.

"We should get going," Snape interrupted, "I'm sure you can talk to her later, Potter."

-He should show you some respect!- Ther hissed angrily.

-It's okay; he doesn't like me very much. I'll see you later, but we really should get going,- Harry hissed. Ther reluctantly unwound herself from her comfortable position.

-It's still no reason to treat you like that, you deserve some respect,- Ther hissed, floating away.

-Maybe, but I am no longer Lord Slytherin,- Harry said, amused, -I'll see you soon.-

"What did she say?" Draco asked as they headed towards the house.

"She just wanted to welcome me. Parselmouths are rare, after all," Harry said, telling the half-truth.

Snape pushed open the door, and Harry was greeted with hissed from pictures, statues, and other animated objects all over the house.

-Welcome, Lord Slytherin!-

-Salazar! We haven't seen you for a while!-

-Welcome back, Sal!-

-Thank you,- Harry said, glancing around the familiar entrance hall, a large part of which was decorated with statues or pictures of snakes. Draco was staring.

"That's a lot of snakes," he commented.

"This house has been passed down in my family for generations and most of the animated objects are snakes," Snape explained, "Although why they would want to talk to you, Potter, is a mystery to me."

"They just wanted to greet me. Apparently, they don't see outsiders often," Harry said, still sticking to his half-truths.

"Of course," Snape said, "This house is well hidden and kept secret. Not even Dumbledore knows exactly where it is."

"Wow," Draco said, looking around. Harry pretended to be looking around to, though he already knew his way around the house.

"Very Slytherin," was his only comment. Snape started by giving them a tour. Well, he gave Draco a tour and Harry followed. He seemed to be trying to ignore Harry, which was fine by him.

At first the tour seemed oddly incomplete. After a minute, he figured out that all the rooms and passageways with Parseltongue passwords were left out. Of course, Snape couldn't speak Parseltongue, so he had no idea that there were more rooms.

"…and your bedroom is up ahead. There are only two bedrooms, so either Potter has to sleep in your room, or he can sleep on a couch, it's your choice," Snape said. Draco glanced at Harry.

"I guess you can sleep in my room. I don't really care," Draco said, shrugging.

"No, its okay," Harry said, "I have nightmares sometimes; I don't want to wake you up."

"That's fine, it's not easy to wake me up," Draco said.

"I'm fine on a couch," Harry said. There was a large chance that he would wake up screaming, and he really didn't want anyone to know that his nightmares were that bad. Draco wrinkled his nose.

"I don't think so. Come on, I don't mind," Draco said, stubbornly. He had decided that Harry was sleeping in his room, and he was used to getting what he wanted.

"If you're sure…" Harry said, knowing it would be no use to argue.

"I'm sure. We've already had our lunches; do you need something to eat?" Draco asked. Snape was a little annoyed by that, it was his house after all, but Harry replied before he could protest.

"No, I've already had my lunch," Harry lied.

"Here we are," Snape said, stopping in front of a picture of a black haired, green eyed woman. Harry almost choked again. He knew there was no reason to be surprised, after all, this picture had always been there, but he hadn't registered that she would be guarding his rooms.

-Hello mother,- He whispered.

"Sa…" She started, surprised, before Harry cut her off.

-Parseltongue please, mother, they don't know me as Salazar Slytherin,- Harry said.

-I'll ask later. We were all quite upset when you left, you know,- His mother replied, -And why have you cut your hair?-

-I'm sorry about leaving,- Harry said, -My hair is like this because that's how I look now. I'll explain later, I'm busy now.- Snape was looking at the painting with a raised eyebrow.

"You neglected to inform me that you can speak Parseltongue," Snape told her.

"But you never asked, Severus," Salazar's mother said with a smile, "Was there something you wanted?"

"These two need to sleep in your room for the next month or so," Snape explained.

"And the password?" She asked.

"Draco can choose it," Snape said, "I'm going to go unpack, Draco, you can come with me if you want. We're going to go to Diagon Alley in afterwards to get you your things."

"I'll be fine, Professor," Draco said.

"But we don't have our booklists yet," Harry said, confused.

"What are you talking about, Potter? Sixth years got them at the beginning of the month," Snape said, annoyed.

"What?" Harry nearly shouted, starting to hiss furiously in Parseltongue. Dumbledore had been keeping mail from him, it was the only explanation.

-Salazar!- His mother hissed, -Watch your mouth!-

"Sorry," Harry muttered, blushing, "Whatever, Dumbledore has to give my OWLs to me soon, or I won't be able to sign up for any subjects. _And_ he needs to let me take my Apparation tests…I should start a list."

"You haven't gotten you OWLs yet?" Draco asked, surprised.

"No, but I really don't care anymore. He has to give them to me eventually," Harry said.

"Stop being so melodramatic, Potter. I'll see you in about twenty minutes, Draco," Snape said, heading down towards the dungeons, where Harry knew two potions labs were available people who didn't speak Parseltongue.

"He doesn't like you very much, does he?" Salazar's mother asked.

"Nope!" Harry said cheerfully, "So what's the password, Draco?"

Draco thought for a minute, "I don't know…You can choose, Harry."

"How about supercalifragilisticexpialidocious?" Harry asked.

Draco blinked, "What?"

"It's a Muggle word," Harry explained.

"Um…"

"Come on, nobody would ever guess it!" Harry said.

"Fine, but I'll have a hard time remembering it. Why do we need passwords, anyways, when there's nobody here?" Draco asked.

Harry shrugged, "I don't know, but won't it be fun?"

"Whatever," Draco said, "Can we come in, then?"

"What's the password?" The portrait asked.

"What? But we…" Draco started.

"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," Harry cut in. The portrait swung open to reveal a small room decorated much like the Slytherin common room. It was all green and silver, and the wood used in the furniture was very dark, almost black. "Thank you," He called when they were inside the room, and the portrait swung shut.

Draco looked around; it was a lot like the Slytherin dorms. The beds were similar, though not four posters like the Hogwarts ones, and even the wood color was the same. The major differences were the window and the carpet; Slytherin dorms were in the dungeons, so they couldn't have windows and had stone floors. This room also had a desk, while the Slytherin dorms only had small, beside tables.

"So, who gets which bed?" He asked

"It doesn't matter to me, you choose," Harry said, "Anyways; I'm supposed to be on the couch."

"I like this one," Draco decided, choosing the bed on the left.

"Fine with me," Harry said, putting his trunk, which still looked like an ordinary trunk, next to the bed on the left, "So, what are we going to do? We have half an hour."

"Aren't you going to unpack?" Draco asked. Harry pretended to think for a minute.

"No, I don't think so. Don't you have anything?"

"I have been disinherited from my family, so no, I don't have anything," Draco said.

"Oh," Harry said, not quite sure what to say, "Sorry."

"It doesn't matter," Draco said, "I don't really want to be a Malfoy any more." Harry didn't know what to say to that, and tried to think of another topic. While he was doing that, he remembered something that he had wanted to do.

Walking over to the window, he opened it and let his aura flare up in what was the magical equivalent of a whistle. Hedwig, as his owl, was bound to his aura, and would feel that he was calling her. Satisfied, he opened his trunk and took out Hedwig's cage.

He had wanted to call her earlier, but didn't want to risk Snape seeing him. Harry wasn't sure if Snape was trained to be an aura reader, but knew Godric wasn't. Auras were considered very personal, so aura reading was considered a dark art.

"What are you doing?" Draco asked.

"I expect Hedwig to come back in a couple hours; I let Hermione borrow her," Harry said, "Do you mind if I put her cage on the desk?"

"I don't mind," Draco said, "As long as it doesn't take up too much room."

"It won't," Harry assured him, "There's still plenty of work room." There was a knocking sound.

"I guess that's Professor Snape," Harry said, "See you, then."

"Bye," Draco said, leaving the room.

Harry watched them walk across the grounds and disappear before leaving the room, this time through a picture of a Runespoor. One of the three heads of the orange and black striped snake bowed to him, but the other two were too busy arguing to notice.

Harry used his free time to go through the secret passageways, visiting snakes all over the castle. Many hours later, the snakes told him that Snape and Draco were back. Harry ran back to the portrait to the Runespoor and through it, throwing himself on the bed and opening up the book that he had left there for that purpose. Harry heard Draco try to say the password a few times before opening it for him from the inside.

"I hate your password," Draco said, "I'll never be able to remember it."

"Don't worry," Harry said, "I'm sure you'll get it eventually. After all, we do have a month here."

"Professor Snape says that dinner is going to be ready in ten minutes," Draco said, flopping onto his bed. Harry snapped his book closed in faked disgust.

"I can't concentrate with those two arguing!" He said, gesturing towards the Runespoor.

"What are they arguing about?" Draco asked curiously.

"Different things," Harry said, "At the moment, the left head is complaining that the right head complains too much."

"If you say so," Draco said.

"You're lucky, all you hear is hissing. I'm going to be up all night listening to those two arguing," Harry said.

"Can't you…I don't know, turn it off?" Draco asked.

"No, it's just another language to me. Actually, to me, it sounds like English," Harry said.

"Weird," Draco said, "I think its time for dinner." They headed downstairs and Harry let Draco get them lost before pretending to ask a nearby statue for directions.

Dinner was quiet. Draco, hungry from spending all afternoon shopping enthusiastically dug into his food, while Harry and Snape, though both hungry, ate at a much slower pace. Draco chatted with Snape about different things, and Harry listened, pretending not to.

After dinner, Harry and Draco went back to their room, talking a little bit before getting into bed. Harry slid into his bed exhausted, placing his glasses on the desk, which was behind his bed. It had been a long day, and he had woken up very early. Not to mention how much magic he used teleporting Snape and Draco and messing with the wards. Soon, he was fast asleep.

_Salazar stared at the fire in his private chambers, wondering how a little argument had become so blown out of proportion. He owed it to his friends to tell them the truth, tell them about his life, but he could never bring himself to do it. His friends had been great to him, always patient, but he had waited too long. _

_Godric had confronted him one day and Salazar hadn't known what to do. They had started arguing, even in front of the students, and their playful pranks had taken a slightly dangerous turn. Salazar had started cutting himself, and spent more and more time in the Chamber with his familiar. _

_Salazar knew quite well that he couldn't bring a basilisk out of the Chamber, however small she may be. Godric didn't even know he bred snakes as a hobby, and had only found out that he could speak to snakes the week previous; after one of Godric's particularly nasty pranks, involving a very poisonous snake, went wrong. After that, he had been fired from his position as the Hogwarts potions teacher. Godric's words, that he was 'a danger to the school', still rang in his ears, however hard he tried to ignore them._

_Salazar had even moved into his house part time. The house was passed on to him from his mother's side of the family, and was where he had lived during the summers when he was going to school. It was an odd place, passed on through his family for generations, and the house had a series of passageways that could only be opened using Parseltongue passwords. It was a large, almost castle like, building and was surrounded by a forest. _

_The whole place radiated peacefulness and was a haven for those in need, no matter who or what you were. The forest was filled with both light and dark creatures that liven in harmony and helped each other when in need. Salazar loved the house, and the only thing that kept him from moving in permanently was his friends. It was where he planned to go if the argument got out of hand._

_This morning, it had somehow gotten out that Salazar was a dark wizard, something that he had been keeping secret. Dark wizards may be allowed, but they were widely looked down upon, and the Ministry was under a lot of pressure somehow get rid of them. It was one of the biggest secrets he had hidden from his friends, and he dreaded their reaction, Godric's in particular. Godric came from a very old, light family, and all his relatives had been killed by dark wizards._

_Salazar knew he couldn't hide forever; knew he should talk to his friends and tell them the truth. He stood up, and walked out of the dungeons, thinking through the conversation in his head. Helga hated dark wizards, her grandmother had been killed by a group of them years ago, but Rowena was neutral. She didn't like them, but had no particular hatred for them, and was the most logical of the group. _

_Salazar neared the Great Hall, knowing that they would probably be there; it was dinnertime, after all. Taking a deep breath, he entered the hall, and headed up to the staff table._

"_Can I talk to you?" He asked the other founders, faltering a bit when he saw their hate filled expressions._

"_Salazar Slytherin, you are hereby banished from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for corrupting the school from within and spreading the dark arts," Godric stated, standing up and glaring at him, "You must be gone from here by midnight with all your things." Salazar stood frozen, his mind refusing to accept what those words meant._

"_What?" He gasped, gaping at Godric._

"_You heard me," Godric said calmly, although Salazar could tell that Godric was the angriest that Salazar had ever seen him. Salazar looked at Rowena and Helga desperately, eyes begging them to tell him it wasn't true. They glared back at him, eyes burning with hatred. They had turned against him, they really hated him. Salazar gave a sad smile._

"_So be it," he said, and fled the Great Hall. He ran through the dungeons, ran through the halls that he had built, that only he knew the secrets of. He had already moved his things to his house long ago, when Hogwarts was no longer a welcome home. He ran through the Chamber, ran through a portal he had set up, connecting it to his house. He heard Serphenia calling after him, felt Hogwarts trying to pull him back, but ran on, lashing out with his magic and collapsing the portal._

_Even the house wasn't friendly, didn't supply him with the love that he so desperately needed. He fled the house and ran into the forest; kept running until he collapsed, tears streaming down his face. He took out the dagger he kept up his sleeve and slit his wrists quickly and efficiently. He could feel his life flowing out of him with the blood, could feel the basilisk venom on the end of the dagger start to take effect; could feel the burning spread through his body… _

"…arry! Come on, Harry, Wake up!" Harry woke up, gasping for air. "Are you okay?" Draco asked, worriedly.

"I'm fine," Harry said, lying back down, "So, what did I say?"

"You didn't say any words that I could make out," Draco said, "Just sort of whimpered."

"I'm fine," Harry repeated, embarrassed, "It was just a nightmare." He should have remembered to place the charms around his bed to muffle sounds. If he had thought about it, it was perfectly reasonable that he would dream about that day. After all, to him it had happened only yesterday. Draco looked doubtful, but went back to his own bed, pulling the covers up and then rolling over to look at him.

"Are you sure you're okay?" The blurry blob that was Draco asked.

"I'm fine, Draco, you can go back to sleep," Harry said, glancing at the clock and momentarily fixing his vision so he could see it. Ten o'clock, he had nearly an hour before the next Death Eater meeting. He closed his eyes and tried to go back to sleep, but he was still up long after Draco had fallen asleep.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Thank you, reviewers; you're all so kind to me!

Of course, that doesn't mean that I want them to stop coming :D

Also, feel free to e-mail me with ideas, or just to chat; I'd love a pen-pal or beta.

I need someone who understands enough Latin to help me make spells and some ideas for pranks, if you'd like to help out.


	6. Summer at Snape Manor

_Is he going to drop his mask when he goes to school?_

_I'm not sure, but by then he probably will have dropped most of his masks._

_Is there a 'Godric', 'Rowena', or 'Helga' floating around?_

_I'm not sure what you mean by this, but all four founders are somewhere out there…with or without their memories of being founders._

_That dream at the end of the chapter, is it the day Sal killed himself?_

_Yes, the dream was a memory of the day he was banished and killed himself._

_When will Draco get his memories of being Godric?_

_Not for a while, unfortunately._

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Six: Summer at Snape Manor**

Harry opened his eyes, feeling much better than he had been the previous day. It was only then that he realized how messed up his emotions had been. Harry also noticed that he had been acting disturbingly Gryffindor the day before, although he grudgingly admitted that he was now more Gryffindor than he cared to be.

It was only seven o'clock, but he wasn't tired, so he sat up. After casting a few illusions around his bed to make it look like he was still asleep, he closed his eyes, pulling himself into his own mind and magical core.

Harry winced as he saw the mess, or at least what the mess looked like from the outside. The outer wall was a cross between the type of Occlumency Salazar used and the type of Occlumency Harry used. Pulling himself through that wall, he made his way through his memories, both personal and non-personal now mixed together in a jumbled mess.

He then reached another barrier, the one he had used to keep people away from his more personal memories. Harry's, which was made purely out of non-personal memories, was mixed with Salazar's subtle but impenetrable one. There was a huge crack in it, and personal memories were flowing through, mingling with the non-personal ones.

Harry made his way through that wall too, and was met with his…well, magical core. That too was a mess: red and green everywhere with memories and facts drifting randomly around. Harry sighed, resigning himself to some hard work.

Harry spent what felt like at least a couple days organizing every memory, sorting facts into mental filing cabinets, and repairing his mental shields. In reality, it had only been three hours, as time moves differently in one's mind.

Harry withdrew from his mind and slowly opened his eyes, getting readjusted to the physical world. His mental shields were still far from perfect, but they would have to do for now. Harry was sure they would be enough to trick Snape, at least.

There was still a lot more on his to do list, and he needed to get many of them done as soon as possible. Harry mentally ran through the list in his head, glad at least, that the mental filing cabinets were now working properly.

1) Set up Gryffindor mask as soon as possible

2) Go through trunk and reorganize it

3) Test current magical strength and limits of angel powers

4) Go through books and learn more modern magic

5) Look up angels

6) Look up reincarnation

7) Find out if Draco's getting Godric's memories

8) Find a way to attend Hogwarts without the wards breathing down my neck

Harry was very glad that his mental filing cabinets worked like that; there was no way that he was going to leave a list like that lying around. Well, first things first, although that list wasn't in a particular order, he would need to get his masks up properly if he was going to live with two Slytherins for the rest of the month.

Harry sighed, and wiped his face of emotion. _Okay, that was easy, now for the mask…What are the first things that come to mind when I think of Gryffindor? The house, not the person._ He thought for a minute, _brave, rash, quick to anger, saving-people-thing, self-sacrificing, golden boy, lion, red and gold, cheerful, confident, arrogant…_Harry frowned at that.

He needed to be like he was before, but what he was before was too Slytherin. Even so, Harry had never ever been arrogant. No, not arrogant, perhaps confident, but never arrogant. Having decided that, Harry put together a mask; carefully balancing and measuring every emotion. Harry crawled out of bed, automatically putting on his glasses, and crept over to Draco's bed.

"Draco?" He asked quietly. There was no reply. "Draco?" He tried again, a bit louder. "Draco?" Harry half shouted, but still, there was not reply. Sighing, Harry reached over and poked him. In the ribs. Hard.

"Aaah!" Draco shouted, waking up instantly and scrambling away from Harry. "What was that for?"

"You wouldn't get up," Harry said, "I've been waiting for ages, and ages, and ages."

"Stupid Gryffindor," Draco muttered. Harry considered telling him that he was nearly a Slytherin, but decided against it. It might have been worth it to see the look on Draco's face, but if that got back to Snape, he would have to be extra careful around the Slytherin Head of House.

"When's breakfast?" Harry asked.

"How am I supposed to know?" Draco asked Harry, irritated at the Gryffindor's energy.

"You spent all afternoon yesterday with him," Harry pointed out.

"Well I don't know," Draco snapped.

Harry blinked, "You're not a morning person, are you?"

"What do you think?" Draco snarled, pulling the covers over his head.

"So do you think Snape's going to come get us?" Harry asked.

"I don't know," Draco said, his voice muffled by the blankets.

"Well, he has to, doesn't he? Do you think he's going to come soon? It's ten o'clock. He doesn't seem the type to sleep in; do you think he's letting us sleep, or is he waiting for us to come down? Or do you think that he's working and he just forgot about us?" Harry said, overflowing with hyperactive energy that, however fake it was, was getting on Draco's nerves.

"Potter, shut up," Draco said, rolling over and putting his pillow over his head.

:I'm afraid you're giving him a headache: someone said from behind Harry. Harry whirled around, and saw Fawkes sitting on Hedwig's perch.

"Oh, well, he deserves it…You know, I really should get you your own perch. Or make one," Harry said, thoughtfully.

"Who are you talking to, Potter?" Draco asked, rolling over.

"Fawkes," Harry said, "So do you plan to hang around me all the time, or are you going off on your own?" He asked the phoenix.

:I'm sorry for the way I acted yesterday: Fawkes chirped, looking uncomfortable::I just wasn't expecting to see you.:

"And I'm sorry about the way that I treated you yesterday," Harry said after thinking for a minute, "I wasn't exactly having a great day."

:If you don't mind, I'd like to stay with you: Fawkes chirped, shooting a glace at Draco.

:You want to stay near him: Harry said with sudden understanding, "Sure, I don't mind, but you have to leave me alone if I want some privacy, okay?"

:Thank you: Fawkes said, sounding grateful.

"Can you really understand what the phoenix says?" Draco asked curiously.

"Yes," Harry said.

"How do you do it?" Draco asked. Harry was on the verge of revealing his telepathic powers, but stopped, realizing that if he gave them away, there would be a big chance that Draco would put two and two together and realize that Harry was his mysterious rescuer.

"I don't know," Harry said, and it was true. He had a good idea, but didn't know for sure. Besides, he shouldn't have even told Draco that. It wouldn't be a good idea if Dumbledore heard of them; he was mentally whacking himself for letting Snape know the day before.

"Severus says to get ready for breakfast," a voice said from behind them. Harry and Draco jumped, and whirled around to see Salazar's mother in the picture of the Runespoor.

"Why does everybody keep doing that to me?" Harry asked nobody in particular. Salazar's mother smiled at him.

"Breakfast will be ready in half an hour," She said before leaving the picture.

Half an hour later, Draco and Harry, with Fawkes on his shoulder, entered the dining room. Snape was already sitting at the table, waiting for Harry and Draco…Or just Draco.

"Why did you bring the Headmaster's phoenix with you, Potter?" Snape asked.

"Fawkes is supposed to stay with me," Harry said, "I guess he just took it a little too seriously."

"And why don't you just tell him to leave you alone?" Snape asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You do believe me!" Harry exclaimed, inwardly smirking at the annoyed expression on Snape's face.

"I was being sarcastic, Potter," Snape said.

"Oh," Harry said, pretending to be embarrassed. How he hated letting the man get the better of him like that, but it would be suspicious if he didn't. The rest of the meal passed mostly in silence.

Sometimes Snape would make a comment and Harry would pretend to get mad, or Draco would say something, but any conversation usually died out pretty quickly. Harry talked a little with Fawkes, mindspeech so as not to annoy Snape, but even that conversation was limited. Breakfast was finally over, and Snape went back into the dungeons, telling Draco that he was allowed to fly and that Harry could to, if he must.

"So, should we go fly?" Draco asked Harry. Harry wanted to agree, but his back, around the area where his wings used to be, tingled at the thought of flying, and he wasn't sure if it was such a good idea.

"Sorry, but I need to write a letter to Dumbledore. If I don't know what classes I'm taking, how am I supposed to get my homework done before the school year starts?" Harry asked, "You go fly without me."

Draco glanced at him, "Are you sure? Everyone knows how much you love flying."

"I'll be fine. There'll be plenty of other opportunities, anyways," Harry said.

"See if you can come out for a bit later," Draco said.

"I'll try," Harry lied, "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious." The portrait of Salazar's mother swung open and Draco went over to his new trunk and pulled out a broom.

"Did you get a new broom?" Harry asked.

"Professor Snape got it for me," Draco said, proudly handing over a handsome broom with the name Freedomflight on the handle, "It's not from one of the more well-known companies, but it's supposed to be a very good broom."

"It looks great," Harry said, "Although we don't have much time until lunch."

Draco looked at the clock and winced, "I've really got to go now if I want to fly. Are you sure you can't come?"

Harry hesitated, "I really need to get this letter to Dumbledore. Take Fawkes, though, I'm sure she'd love a chance to stretch her wings." Fawkes sent him a grateful look.

"Didn't the Headmaster say that Fawkes is a boy?" Draco asked. Harry mentally smacked himself.

"She's a girl, but, for some reason, Dumbledore seems to think she's a boy," Harry explained.

"And she's supposed to be his familiar?" Draco asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I know," Harry said, "but Fawkes doesn't want him to know, can you please, please not tell anyone?"

"Sure," Draco said, shrugging.

"Go on, we're wasting time," Harry said. After the two left, Harry sat at the desk with a roll of parchment. He tapped his quill on the desk, but couldn't think of exactly what to write. It was only then that he noticed Hedwig was still missing.

He looked out the window worriedly, but couldn't see his beloved pet anywhere. He paused for a minute, watching God-Draco and Fawkes outside, before tearing his eyes away to continue looking for his snowy owl.

Harry spread out his magic in all directions, but she wasn't anywhere in or around the Manor and forest. He concentrated on the special bond owls shared with their masters, and followed it. His surroundings seemed to swirl and dissolve, spinning around him in a dizzying way.

_Harry was standing in a familiar looking room. Having no need to wear masks, now that he was pretty much a spirit, Harry glanced around, analyzing everything carefully. He was, if he wasn't mistaken, in the girl's bedroom in number twelve, Grimmauld Place. Spotting Hedwig in a rather cramped looking cage, Harry ran over to her. _

"_Are you alright?" He asked, examining the cage and finding that it was blocked with magic, radiating Dumbledore's aura. Harry hissed something very rude about Dumbledore in Parseltongue. Hedwig chirped reassuringly, although Harry couldn't understand her like he could Fawkes. "Can you show me what happened?" Hedwig chirped worriedly._

_:I'll be fine, Hedwig: Harry said. The surroundings swirled again, and all of a sudden, it was sunset. Hermione was reading on her bed and Hedwig was now perched on Harry's shoulder. _

_There was a tapping sound on the window and Hermione looked up from her book. Another Hedwig was perched on the window sill, tapping on the glass, for this was a memory rather like in a pensive._

_Hermione opened the window and read the letter that had been attached to Hedwig's leg. Harry couldn't read it from where he was, but knew what it said:_

Dear Hermione,

Sure you can keep Hedwig for a while, but not too long, okay? What do you need her for?

-Harry

_Hermione turned to Hedwig, "Can you sleep in here?" She asked, gesturing towards the small cage, "I don't have anything better."_

_Hedwig looked like she didn't want to, but reluctantly stepped into the cage. There was a knock on the door and Hermione let Ron into the room._

"_Guess what, Hermione! We're going to be trained to protect Harry, and Dumbledore's going to train me personally himself!" Ron said, looking excited._

"_Wow, Ron!" Hermione said, "But we aren't allowed to use magic out of school, are we?"_

"_We are!" Ron exclaimed, bouncing on the balls of his feet, much like Ludo Bagman had at the world cup, "Dumbledore managed to get passes for us! He had to get one for Harry to, but nobody's allowed to tell him that."_

_Hermione frowned, "Why not? Doesn't Harry get training to?"_

"_Hermione," Ron said patiently, "If Harry found out, he would probably do something stupid. Imagine if he got it into his head that he needed to save someone and went running off! Besides, we're getting training so Harry doesn't need it! We just need to stay close to him all the time."_

"_I suppose so, but keeping Hedwig all locked up is a bit extreme isn't it? I mean, couldn't we at least get her a bigger cage? That's cruelty to animals!" Hermione said._

"_Hermione, we don't have any other cages. This is the biggest one we have," Ron said, "Plus, she's Harry's familiar, so she must have some pretty powerful magic. After all, Harry's a pretty powerful wizard, isn't he? This is the only one we have with magical reinforcements. She'll be fine." His familiar? How much of this rubbish had Dumbledore been spreading?_

_But Harry could see Dumbledore's logic in it. Hermione undoubtedly would look up all she could about familiars, and would find that magical familiars were rare and only belonged to the most powerful wizards. Familiars themselves were rare enough, though, and it would show that Harry was a powerful wizard, just not as much as Dumbledore._

"_But what if Harry finds out we mistreated Hedwig. I mean, he's pretty attached to her, isn't he?" Hermione asked._

_Ron shrugged, "He doesn't need to find out."_

"_Ron, Hermione, dinner time!" Mrs. Weasley shouted from somewhere downstairs, no doubt the kitchen or dining room. Ron and Hermione left the room, still conversing in low voices. _

_By now, Harry was furious with them. He had suspected that his 'friends' were controlled to some extent by Dumbledore, but he hadn't expected anything like what he had heard in the conversation._

"_So be it," He whispered, his eyes burning with emerald fire. He was pulled out of the memory, and was soon standing in front of Hedwig again. If he had looked, he would have seen two pure white and very solid feathers float to the ground. Harry did not look, however, as he was busy concentrating. _

_Using magic as a spirit was somewhat easier, as he didn't have a physical body that the magic had to travel through, but was different, and he didn't have much practice. Managing to 'find' the magic fairly easy, Harry used his magic to release the lock and open the door of the cage. Hedwig chirped in thanks and flew out the window._

_Harry followed her, instinctively launching himself outside the window and spreading his wings, soaring over the buildings and streets. They flew to the Manor together, dancing in the sky. Harry's emerald eyes were bright as he flew over the Mansion and past Draco and Fawkes; the later singing a bright tune and flying with them for a minute before resuming whatever game she had been playing. _

Harry returned to his body and stood up, emerald eyes still bright from the flight. He offered his arm to Hedwig and she landed on it. Harry sat there, stroking Hedwig for a few minutes, lost in thought.

"Potter?" someone asked behind him.

Harry whirled around, "Will everyone stop doing that already; it's driving me insane!"

"You sanity has always been questionable at best," Snape said, "It's time for lunch."

"I was wondering why Fawkes flew off," Draco said, coming up behind Snape. Harry turned around and saw Fawkes on the window. When he turned back around, he saw that Snape was already gone and Draco was putting away his broomstick.

"Sorry Hedwig, Fawkes, but I don't think that I should bring you two to lunch," Harry said, "You're going to have to stay here. Are you going to be all right?"

Hedwig hooted reassuringly, and Fawkes said::Of course.:

"Bye!" Harry said, following Draco, who had just left the room.

Lunch passed much as breakfast had; nobody even bothering to talk. Snape told Harry that Occlumency lessons would be at six o'clock every night, starting that night, and went back to the dungeons.

Draco turned to look at Harry, "Now can we go fly?" Harry waited for his back to tingle but, to his surprise, it didn't.

"Sure," Harry said. Had that flight with Hedwig cured his desire to stretch his wings? But he had only been spirit then, so that didn't make sense.

Harry and Draco spent all afternoon messing around on their broomsticks, and then Harry headed inside for his Occlumency lesson with Snape. He spent about half and hour there, letting Snape see false memories and yell at him for not trying before eating dinner, which was the same as breakfast and lunch.

The next week passed that way; waking up, having breakfast, playing (often flying), lunch, more playing, Occlumency, dinner, and then bed. Harry had fun with Draco, but sometimes felt a little stifled by him. He really needed some time to himself to think and figure out a few things. Thankfully, a chance came only a few days later, when Snape needed to visit Diagon Alley (and Knockturn Alley) to get some potion ingredients and invited Draco along.

Harry waved goodbye to Draco out the window, despite the fact that he doubted that Draco could see him. As soon as he saw them disappear, however, he let the Gryffindor mask finally drop.

He hadn't gotten a chance to test his magic or look up any of the things he had planned to do, but he barely had now, not when Godric's birthday was so close. There was also only a couple weeks left before he would be heading back to school, and the only thing that he couldn't do at school was find his daggers.

Harry needed his daggers; needed them for the protection they gave and for cutting. He still cut at night, when the fears and worries overwhelmed him. The dagger that Harry used was very nice and all, but it was just another dagger; it didn't have quite that specialness that Salazar's daggers had.

Harry had a friend now, but he was sure that Draco would abandon him when he remembered. Fawkes and Harry were friendly, sure, but Fawkes wasn't quite Harry's friend. Hedwig was loyal, but she wasn't enough, no matter how hard she tried.

-Do you need something, Lord Slytherin?- Asked a voice from right behind him. Harry spun around, but relaxed when he saw it was Thermuthis. Harry was, by now, extremely annoyed. That made it, what, eighteen times in the last month or so? How was everybody managing to sneak up on him like that?

Harry sighed, he knew the answer. His mind needed more sorting; only memories and facts had been done so far. He still needed to balance out the two lives to get control over his magic and habits. Harry mentally filed it away with the to-do list.

-I…Have you seen my daggers?- Harry asked.

The snake sighed, -Salazar, you need to give up that dangerous habit.-

-I know,- Harry said, -But I can't Ther, it doesn't work like that.-

Ther looked at him sadly, -I was assigned to watch over your daggers, to give them to you if you ever returned. I have to give them back, but please be careful, Salazar.-

-I will,- Harry said. Ther twisted into a tight coil and then unwrapped, now coiled tightly around two long daggers and three shorter ones. Harry took them from her. –Thank you, Ther,- Harry said, running his hand along the familiar daggers.

Ther suddenly stiffened, -They're home.-

-Already?- Harry asked in surprise. He heard nearby footsteps and swore loudly in Parseltongue.

-Salazar,- Ther said disapprovingly as Harry threw the daggers into the trunk, in his haste forgetting to renew the illusion charm on it. Harry dove onto the bed, slipping on a casual Gryffindor mask in record time.

-Can you pretend that we've been talking for a while?- Harry hissed pleadingly.

Ther rolled her eyes, -Fine, what should we be pretending to talk about?-

Harry blinked, -Does it matter? I mean, it's not as if they could understand us.-

"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," Snape said outside the room. Harry mentally giggled at hearing Snape say such a ridiculous word but then stopped. Since when did he _giggle_? Those disgustingly Gryffindorish habits were rubbing off on him.

-How did you come up with such a ridiculous password?- Ther asked as the door swung open.

-It's a word from a Muggle's children's movie,- Harry said.

-What's a movie?- Ther asked.

-I'll tell you later…- He pretended to notice Snape and Draco for the first time, "Aren't you back a little early?"

"If you must know, Potter, there was only one store that had a chance at having the ingredient that I was looking for, and they didn't," Snape asked.

"What ingredient?" Harry asked curiously.

"Runespoor venom," Snape replied sourly. Harry had to stop himself from wincing sympathetically (another Gryffindorish habit!). Runespoor venom was notorious for being a hard to get potion ingredient. Salazar himself didn't have nearly as much trouble getting it as anyone else, as he was a Parseltongue and it was relatively easy to get it himself.

"Runespoor as in that type of snake?" Harry asked, pointing to the picture on the wall.

"Yes, Potter," Snape said impatiently. He had evidently become bored of the conversation, as he turned and left, presumably to one of the potions labs.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Snape was headed, not to the potions labs as Harry had assumed, but towards the library. Once there, he took a book off of one of the shelves and flipped it open, flipping through the pages and obviously looking for something.

He had almost given up, when a picture caught his eye. In it was a green trunk with silver decorations that turned out to be, on closer examination, snakes.

_Item: Trunk_

_Description: Green with silver snake decorations and fastenings; unopenable_

_Price Bought? Came with Snape Manor_

_Price Sold: 120 Galleons_

_Sold To: William Johnson (trunk maker)_

Now that was interesting. Snape was almost positive that that was the same trunk that Potter had. Apparently, nobody could open it and it had been found in the same house they were staying in. How had Potter gotten it, or, more importantly, where or when had Potter gotten it?

Snape headed back down to the dungeons, lost in thought. Making potions was a relaxing activity that he usually did when he needed to think (or any other time, really). How, when, and where had Potter gotten the trunk? Was it coincidence?

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

I hated this chapter (well, some parts of it), but the next chapter will be better; some things are actually going to happen!


	7. Travel Through Time

_Why does Fawkes like him (Harry) anyway?_

_They weren't supposed to be as friendly as they turned out but Fawkes, at least, eventually realizes that they were perhaps too harsh on Salazar (he has had a thousand years to think about it, after all._

_Couldn't Snape just ask Harry to get the snake venom?_

_Well, a) Snape doesn't know that there are any Runespoors around (in the forest, you know); b) Snape isn't about to ask Harry's help for anything; and c) Snape sort of…well, he doesn't forget that Harry knows Parseltongue but, like most people, he just doesn't connect the snake tongue to Dumbledore's golden boy._

_Is this the first time in the story that the angel stuff has been added in?_

_The angel stuff was introduced in the first chapter, and pretty much ignored, except for little things (like the fact that angel powers gave him the ability to shapeshift). I'd recommend you read it, but its basically: Harry has huge, black wings with four streaks of white feathers, fangs, and pointy ears. Angel powers gave him shapeshifting abilities, so he can easily hide them. When he notices this, Harry does think of some stuff about angels that he read in a book once, so you should probably read if you want to know more about angels._

_As for his being dark I must ask - are the white strips in the wings due to Harry's personality or did he have them before? You say he is an fallen /excuse me if I'm not using the correct word/ angel. That he had been broken? Was he broken before or did his friends break him? Because it had a great effect on one's personality. If he had been abandoned before then if it turned out he could not die /the reincarnations part/ what would he become? Would he wallow in self-pity or pull himself together? If he does would he turn to the Arts he knows so well and had been his sanctuary before and deal his revenge against those who wronged him or would he let himself be guided by his 'friends'' opinions and forsake them? If he shields himself the way you say he does it is very possible he'd take the first option while silencing his inner doubts when he thinks everyone who becomes close to him abandons him at one time or another, with reasons or without real ones. _

_The white strips represent his innocence, or however much innocence he has left. The black represents more like pain and lack of innocence. I'd say that Sal's wings had a lot more black than Harry's when they merged or whatever and it sort of evened out; though Harry's must have had a lot of black too. I'm calling him a dark angel, as I'm pretty non-religious and so I'm trying to steer my fic away from all that stuff…He's not completely dark, or all his feathers would be black. Everything contributed: his father hating him, his mother dying, his friends turning against him, so it wasn't only his friendsNeither Harry or Salazar seems the type to wallow in self pity, although the hurt and pain might get to them…I'm really not so sure; I don't have a hold on Sal's emotions so much as Harry's (despite them being the same person). _

I haven't changed anything major; just little things in each chapter…and Harry can't talk to Hedwig anymore. And I got a really great beta so we (or rather just she) are/is going through what I've already got up there.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Seven: Travel Through Time**

Moonlight glinted on the silver dagger in Harry's hand. It was nearly midnight a couple of days later and Harry was sitting at the top of the tallest tower in Snape Manor. The tower had a Parseltongue password, so he was sure that nobody would interrupt him.

Harry stared at the dagger, though not really seeing it as his mind was engaged in thought. It would be so easy to simply slit his wrists and end it or use one of the shorter ones tipped with basilisk venom – the latter would certainly be quicker.

Harry's trunk was lying next to him, and Hedwig was perched on his shoulder. For the last couple of nights, Harry had snuck up to the tower and spent about an hour just sorting through his suitcase. Tonight, however, Harry had come simply for the view. _Although it would be so easy to just jump off_, he mused darkly.

He desperately needed some sort of freedom that even cutting wouldn't give him. The only way that he could think of to do this was to kill himself, although a serviceable temporary solution was to cut deep enough that he blacked out for a few beautiful hours. Anyways, the last time he had tried, he had ended up with more problems than before.

He wanted to go home, dammit! Not just this house, which was open to anyone in need, but _his_ home. But Hogwarts wasn't his home any more. A silent tear rolled down his cheek fell to the cold flagstone floor and Harry brushed it away angrily. His emerald eyes, glistening with more unshed tears, were no longer hidden by his ancient glasses; he had no need to pretend up in the tower, where only he could go. The boy wiped his eyes with the hem of his cloak, furious at the sight of the wet spots that appeared on the already-dark fabric.

He was not going to wallow in self pity! He was a Slytherin and was going to act like one! He was going to find a way to get into Hogwarts, despite what the wards had said.

But in the part of his mind that was not dwelling on the blade of the weapon or struggling not to scream, Harry knew that he was setting himself an impossible task. The other three founders had been just as strong as he and they had set up defenses specifically to keep him out. Harry might be let in for a little bit at a time if he had Fawkes with him, but there was no way the wards would let him attend classes, let alone live there!

The 'Gryffindor' took a deep breath and focused on the problem, the reason for his sudden wave of homesickness. It was Draco's birthday the next day, and Harry wasn't sure how to act. He needed more time! His magic was still wildly out of balance, and he had had not time to research.

Godric had been a year older than Salazar, though, so Harry had no idea as to when he was going to get his memories back, if ever. Draco, however, was one of the few students in his year that was younger than Harry.

Would Godric be so mad that he told Snape or Dumbledore about him? Would Godric have to call the wards off? Harry pushed the last thought away; he wasn't thinking about Hogwarts, he was thinking about Gryffindor!

Harry stood up, suddenly needing to walk as he thought. He shrunk the trunk with a wave of his quivering hand and put it into his pocket. The founder strode briskly through the maze of secret passageways that the residence housed to get into the forest, where he could walk around without worrying about being seen. Once under the cover of the dark trees he fluidly transformed into a panther. Naturally, the creature's form was black with green eyes and silver claws, although Harry was careful to leave out the wings.

No matter how he tried to distract himself, he wanted to go home! He knew beyond all doubt that the Hogwarts wards would surely kill him were he to approach the place but did he really care that much about dying? The founder didn't want to be _killed_, though. If he was going to die, Harry wished to do it himself; he should have control over that at least. But he could practically feel the ancient castle beckoning him home, calling to him, and felt like a piece of him had been ripped out, leaving a gaping hole where Hogwarts should be.

Coming to a decision, Harry reverted to his human form and disapparated. Arriving at the school, he ran inside the grounds. He could hear the lion ward roaring after him, but ran on, the large doors banging open as he reached them. Turning, he sprinted into the dungeons; if he was going to die, he was going to do so at home.

The lion pounced on him first, sharp claws ripping brutally into his back. The eagle and badger soon joined the fight, claws and talons tearing flesh. Harry didn't cry out but couldn't stop himself from falling, the rough stone of the dungeons grating and chilling his already-broken skin.

Hogwarts didn't know what to do: her child was being murdered and she was powerless to do anything but watch; she had no command over the wards what were killing her founder and protector.

In the forest, animals howled and screeched, feeling a disturbance in the magic of the surrounding area. Merpeople in the great lake rose to the surface, wailing in that odd language of theirs and all over the castle, ghosts shivered, house elves cowered, paintings froze and suits of armor rattled hauntedly.

The magic within the castle was wildly out of balance, and Hogwarts herself, the keeper of the magic, was tipping the scale more and more in her panic. The magic in the air started spinning, making a giant whirlpool around the fallen Harry, the roaring and the screaming and the crash of the waves of magic building up in a terrible crescendo. Then all of a sudden, everything stopped; an abrupt and formless silence ringing through the whole castle. And, if one was to look at the spot where Harry Potter had been, they wouldn't see him, for he had vanished into thin air.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Severus Snape, sixth year outcast of Slytherin, couldn't sleep. There was something…off; something had changed and was causing a disturbance in the school. He got out of bed and, as soon as his feet touched the stone floor, was overwhelmed with feelings of distress and…unbalance from the castle.

Severus had always had always had a bit of a connection with Hogwarts, but never felt anything as strong as this from her. The emotions coming off of the castle were enough to send him reeling, and he had to lean against a wall to stop himself from falling over. Little black dots swam before his bleary eyes and Severus felt lightheaded and dizzy.

All of a sudden, it all stopped but for a slight pulling feeling, leaving the Slytherin feeling rather uneasy. What had happened to make the castle react like this? He crept out of the Slytherin dormitories and common room, thankful that, since there was an odd number of Slytherins, he didn't have to share, as members of his house slept two to a room.

Tiptoeing out of the dungeons through a fairly unused corridor, he followed the castle's tugging and nearly tripped over a boy lying in the middle of the passageway. There was blood all over his robes, staining the dull flagstone that he lay sprawled upon.

Severus frowned. He couldn't see the boy very well in the dim passageway, but he looked suspiciously like Potter. Was it a prank? The Slytherin student didn't care what happened either way if it was Potter, but what if it was someone else? The boy was seriously injured, according to the blood that was everywhere.

"Lumos," he whispered. The tip of his wand lit up obediently and the sixth year got a good look at the other boy. He did indeed look a lot like Potter but was thinner and shorter and there were a few other small differences as well, though these could easily have been made with the use of a few simple charms. The boy was also wearing Muggle clothes, while the Potters were all pureblood and therefore did so very rarely.

Severus pulled out his wand and levitated the boy carefully. He was well aware that if the boy was badly injured, he might have just made it worse, but didn't know what else to do. He started towards the hospital wing, careful not to go too fast so as not to jostle the unconscious youth.

"Madam Pomfrey?" He called loudly, knocking rather hard on the heavy oak door of the hospital wing.

It was opened after a few minutes by a rather disheveled looking nurse – she'd obviously been resting,

"Mr. Snape! What on Earth are you doing out of bed at this hour?"

"I found him like this," Severus said, carefully not answering her question.

"Goodness!" The mediwitch exclaimed, finally spotting the boy, "Is that Mr. Potter?"

"I'm not sure, I never got a good look at him," Snape replied neutrally, even though he was almost positive that this teenager was not his long-term rival.

"Well, come in then" Madame Pomfrey bustled, "Can you set him down on that bed over there?" She requested, gesturing towards one of the beds. Severus did so, and Madame Pomfrey took out her wand, waving it in a complex motion over the still form.

"Valetudo Expositus," She said. A silver-blue light shot out of her want, seeming to go _into _the boy. His rescuer didn't see anything else but Madam Pomfrey seemed to be getting some kind of feedback from the spell and was apparently reading something in it. She frowned almost imperceptibly and cast the spell once more.

"That doesn't make any sense," the witch muttered to herself.

"What doesn't make any sense?" Madam Pomfrey jumped as if she had forgotten Snape was there.

"For one thing, this isn't Mr. Potter. I'm not sure who he is, but I've never seen him before. He seems to have been attacked recently by a large animal, but his injuries have been speed-healed by magic not more than half an hour ago. Doing that would have taken an impossible amount of power. Apart from that, he seems fine, though" Madam Pomfrey said, "I'm going to go get the headmaster; you keep an eye on him and make sure that he doesn't move."

Severus was about to protest that the boy was unlikely to be getting up any time soon and that he wouldn't know what to do if he did but she was gone before he opened his mouth. Muttering darkly, the student turned back to the boy, startled and not a little surprised to see his eyes open and a pair of emerald orbs watching him curiously.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Harry slowly returned to consciousness. He stayed motionless, pretending not to be awake while giving his brain some time to catch up and analyse the situation. It didn't take long to realize where he was, after all, both Salazar and Harry had been in the hospital wing too many times to count.

Hogwarts, sensing that he was awake, turned her attention to him and sent a jumbled mess of pictures and emotions. It took a while for Harry to sort out all the information and even then was not sure that he had gotten it completely right.

:You're saying: Harry communicated slowly::that you were upset that the wards were killing me and…something about magic…um, the magic got out of balance…and…WHAT: Hogwarts repeated the message with a little regret and embarrassment. :You sent me back in time? Twenty years: Harry translated, his mental voice weak. Hogwarts gave an affirmative response apologetically.

It was only then that Harry became aware of a voice speaking, "…from that, he seems fine. I'm going to go get the headmaster; you keep an eye on him and make sure that he doesn't move." There were the sounds of a person leaving the room, and someone else muttered under their breath.

Harry opened his eyes warily, but all he saw was a black blur against the white of the hospital wing. He hurriedly fixed his vision and looked around. The hospital wing was almost exactly the same as it would be in twenty years, the only difference being that the shelves carrying various bottles of potions would become a bit fuller as more potions were invented.

He was distracted from his musings when the black blob that Harry now saw was a boy, fifth or sixth year by the look of him, turned to face him. It took all the experience with masks that Salazar had not to let any recognition cross his face, as he saw who it was. Why, of everyone in the castle, did it have to be _Snape_ that found him? They studied each other for a minute, each waiting for the other to speak. It was Harry who spoke first,

"Where am I?" He asked, eyes carefully examining the room as if he had never been there before lingering on the door and on the old and worn bedside table, where he would usually expect to find his wand. Even as he did that, his mind whirled at top speed, thinking up an excuse to give the headmaster, who was probably on his way to the hospital wing, and changing his Occlumency walls to support this new story.

Severus wasn't sure what he was supposed to tell the boy: they were in the middle of a war, after all, but decided the truth couldn't hurt too much in this case – he was bound to find out sooner or later anyway, "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." The strange boy's eyes seemed to light up in recognition at the name, and he relaxed, taking in the room with a lot more interest than before.

Harry opened his mouth to ask another question but, at that moment, the door of the hospital wing opened and Dumbledore walked in, followed by Madam Pomfrey.

"Ah, our unexpected guest," Dumbledore said, catching sight of Harry, "My name is Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore and I'm the head of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where we are right now."

"My name is Evan Harrison, sir," Harry said. "Dumbledore…I think I heard that name before…did you once teach Transfiguration?"

Severus's jaw dropped before he could stop it. This boy had never heard of Dumbledore? He quickly closed his mouth, sliding his mask back in place. How could he have never heard of _the _Albus Dumbledore?

"Yes, I did," Dumbledore said cheerfully, "Who told you?"

"M-my mother," Harry said, his voice trembling a little.

"Ah, I see, and what is your mother's name?" the Headmaster enquired kindly.

"_Was_ my mother's name, sir," Harry corrected quietly, "She died last month."

"Her name?" persisted Dumbledore.

"H-h-her n-name w-was…" the patient started, rubbing imaginary tears from his eyes.

"Albus!" Madam Pomfrey interjected sharply, "He's been through enough tonight! Don't make him relive an obviously painful memory! He's my patient and he needs sleep!" She seemed to forget that he was in perfectly fine health.

"My apologies, Poppy, I momentarily forgot that he was a patient here," Dumbledore said, "I shall speak to him in the morning. Mr. Snape, can I have a word with you in my office? Good night Poppy, Mr. Harrison." And with that he left the office.

"Bye," Severus said to the boy as he headed after the headmaster.

"And you, young man. I don't know what you've been doing, but it was obviously very dangerous. Children these days don't seem to understand what can be harmful and what can't," she sighed, "Well, good night Mr. Harrison. Would you like a dreamless sleep potion?"

"Yes please," Harry said, in a shy voice. She handed the bottle to him and, yawning, bade the boy good night once more, before leaving the office.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

"You wanted to talk to me, Headmaster?" Severus asked politely.

"Yes. May I ask what you were you doing outside of bed in the middle of the night?" Dumbledore asked.

Snape had anticipated that question and spoke the prepared lie easily,

"I couldn't sleep, sir, so I was reading a book in the common room when I heard a noise outside. I've always thought that Potter and his friends knew where our common room was and I didn't want to be pranked, so I looked around a bit. I'm sorry for being out after curfew, but I was thinking more about preventing whatever prank I thought would occur."

"Very well," Dumbledore said, "I'd usually give you a detention for being out of bounds but, since your intentions were good, I'll let you off with a warning this once but I don't want to find that you've been out of your bed after curfew again, understand?"

"Perfectly, sir," Severus said simply.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Harry was awoken the next morning by a couple of third years coming into the hospital wing with a victim of an exploded potion. He didn't hear very much of the conversation but he gathered it had something to do with a girl named Helen accidentally knocking something into her cauldron.

He stretched lazily, looking at the clock, which read 10:43. Doing some quick maths he calculated this to mean that he'd been asleep for about ten hours, give or take. Neither Harry nor Salazar had gotten that much sleep unhindered by nightmares for a long time and it felt nice to relax for a while.

"Oh good, you're awake," Madam Pomfrey said, walking over to him, "The Headmaster wants to see you. He'll be coming at around eleven o'clock if that is all right"

"I guess so," Harry replied, pretending to look nervous.

"It's nothing to be worried about," said the Mediwitch reassuringly, "He just wants to know why you're here so that he can help you."

"Thank you," Harry murmured.

"Whatever for?"

"Well you healed me, didn't you?"

She gave him an odd look,

"Nobody healed you. When we found you, you were perfectly fine, lying in the dungeons."

Arranging his features in a practicedly confused expression, the boy spoke again,

"But someone healed me! I mean, I was injured pretty badly, wasn't I?"

"We're not sure who or what healed you, Mr. Harrison, but there is no doubt that your injuries were serious in nature," Madam Pomfrey explained.

"Madam Pomfrey?" Someone called from the door.

"I need to go now. Remember, the Headmaster will be in here at eleven o'clock to speak to you," said the nurse, rushing over to a little girl with pigtails whose arms were covered in a fluorescent green rash.

At exactly eleven o'clock, Dumbledore came through the door and walked over to the bed Harry was lying in.

"Mr. Harrison, I hope you're feeling better," the Headmaster said, smiling.

"Much better, thank you sir," he replied politely.

"Good, good. Well, first things first, I suppose: I need to know why you're here and then we can figure out what to do."

Harry took a deep breath and began his story,

"M-my mother and I lived in the Muggle world for almost as long as I can remember. My mother never told me what happened to my father, just that he died a long time ago. We were very poor, and moved around a lot, so I never really did go to a magical school. I learned a bit of magic when I was very young, back when we lived in partially magical villages as well as Muggle ones.

Then Mother heard about Voldemort and became very frightened. She took me into hiding in the Muggle world and we lived there for years. She died in a car crash, though, last month. The Muggles tried to put me in an orphanage," Harry sniffed and wiped his eyes on his sleeve, careful to position it so that Dumbledore couldn't see the lack of moisture, "It was horrible there. I-I wasn't thinking straight, just that I had to get out of there.

I ran away and I guess instinct took me here. Mother used to speak of Hogwarts, you see, and she said it was a wonderful place, always open to everyone. I got lost and ended up in that horrible forest, and I heard something; an animal of some kind, I think. I was so frightened and I kept running and running and running.

Something with claws hit me from behind but I kept moving for as long as I could…it slashed me up pretty good, I think…I don't really remember much after that…I sort of remember running into the castle and looking for help…and I got lost in this huge maze of stone passageways…" Harry trailed off helplessly, "And that's all I know."

"Mr. Harrison, you present me with quite an unusual problem," Dumbledore said, "I will do what I can to sign you up as a student here, if that is what you wish."

Harry stared, eyes saucering,

"You-You really would, sir?"

"Of course," Dumbledore said, his crystal blue eyes twinkling as frustratingly as ever.

"Thank you!" the pupil-to-be exclaimed.

Dumbledore chuckled,

"I'll need to know how old you are…"

"Sixteen, sir," Harry replied quickly.

"Good, good…I've got a lot of work to do, but I expect we can sort you into a house by tonight. Good day, Mr. Harrison and I hope that you feel better."

Harry watched Dumbledore exit the hospital wing, not bothering to point out that he was in perfect health. _That was extremely easy_, He thought, lying back on the bed to amusedly watch the fiasco of the green skin potion further unfold and absently wondering which house he was going to be placed in. After all, he was both Slytherin and Gryffindor.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx


	8. The Sorting

I'm soooo sorry for getting this chapter out late! (Ducks flying objects) I'm really, really, really, really sorry! My pace is slowing down, so the next chapter might take a while too.

_How long will Harry be staying in the past?_

_Maybe a couple months…four or five…Chapter-wise, I have no idea._

_Is Draco going to get Gryffindor's memories soon? And will he be sent back in time or how else would they communicate?_ _Are there going to be reincarnations of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw as well? Will Harry and Draco still remain friends despite the fact that their former personal ended up hating each other? What will happen with Snape? Will people ever find out about Harry being Sal and Draco being Griff?_

_Draco will be getting Gryffindor's memories soon-ish, but he won't be going back in time. He'll have to wait until Harry gets back to his own time. Helga and Rowena have reincarnations in Harry's time as well. The rest you have to wait to find out._

_Wouldn't the wards attack him (Harry/Sal) anyways? What difference would the time jump make? They'd still exist, wouldn't they?_

_Yes, the wards should have attacked him, but, as I explained in this chapter, the overflow of magic from the castle overbalanced the wards, so they couldn't have attacked him. The more important non-animated ones have a sort of backup, but the rest of the wards won't come up until the magic gets back into balance, which is when Harry can go back to his time. Get it?_

_Wouldn't Snape remember what Harry looked like in the future and connect it to Evan?_

_Don't worry, Harry has thought of this and will fix the problem before he gets back to his own time._

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Eight: The Sorting**

The rest of the day was spent lazing around in bed, watching the considerable number of victims of potions accidents coming in and guessing their causes (_The potions teacher must be appalling_, Harry thought disgustedly, _to let that many accidents happen_). Madam Pomfrey didn't pay much attention to him as he didn't need any healing and she had her hands full all day. She did, however, give him a couple of pairs of robes to wear, although they were a bit long.

Finally, the sun set and the hospital wing grew quiet. Harry stared off into space, his eyes unfocused as he tried to figure out exactly how an overbalance in power could have knocked him into a different time and how he would get back to his own. He had spent much of the day pondering different things, like that morning, when he had suddenly noticed that he hadn't seen the wards since the night before and had eventually concluded that the overflow of magic from the castle overbalanced them.

The non-animated wards had a power source that acted as an anchor, so they quickly came back up, though the animated ones, which were made of magic and had no power source, wouldn't come back up until the magic got back into balance. Well, at least that was how Harry figured it. It was rather confusing, as all magical theory was just that, theory, and nobody was exactly sure how magic worked.

If he used the same theory, that the magic had overflowed and was out of balance, than it could be that Harry would be sent back home when the magic rebalanced itself, which it would do naturally in time. His theory about that was that the magic had…well, there really was no words for it, but rather similar to a whirlpool.

The water, in this case magic, was pulled towards the bottom by the imbalance, into the spiral, and down, down, down to the bottom. Assuming that the 'whirlpool' was the imbalance in magic, the whirlpool would stop by itself eventually, when the magic rebalanced itself. It wasn't a perfect comparison as there wasn't even a cycle, rather the whirlpool was pinning him down at the bottom, but he couldn't think of anything better. That meant that when the magic rebalanced itself, which could take any anything from a couple of hours and a couple of years, the wards would come back, though that didn't matter, as he probably wouldn't be there when they recovered.

Harry also had another theory, that if he stayed in the past, the magic would stretch like a rubber band and eventually fling him back to his own time and a little beyond. He tended towards the first idea more though, as it made more sense given some of the other, more well know magical theorems.

Harry was considering exactly how the magic had managed to bring him back in time when there was a knock on the door of the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey came through a door outside Harry's line of vision and opened it, letting a woman inside. Harry set aside his musings, not that he had been getting that deep into them, to watch.

He quickly identified the woman as a twenty-years-younger Professor McGonagall. She wasn't that different, Harry decided after a minute of careful studying, she just looked…well, younger. Her hair was pulled back into the severe bun that he recognized from his own time, although the colour was far richer and the hair thicker. She wore the same glasses perched on the end of her nose but her face was almost free of the lines that adorned the McGonagall that he was familiar with; he didn't know if they were due to age, stress or a combination of the two. The Professor talked to the nurse for a few more minutes before making her way over to Harry's bed.

"You must be Mr. Harrison," She said, her voice the same stern one that she would use twenty years later, "My name is Minerva McGonagall and I will be your transfiguration professor; I hold this position in addition to being the Head of Gryffindor House." Of course Dumbledore would introduce the poor, traumatized new kid to the Gryffindor Head of House right before the sorting. How typical.

"Hello Professor McGonagall," Harry said politely.

"Professor Dumbledore sent me to bring you to the Great Hall for your sorting. Follow me," she said, walking off. Harry followed her, staring around at everything around him as if he had never seen any of it. They arrived at the Great Hall rather quickly, despite Harry's constant dawdling, and Professor McGonagall led him inside.

The sorting hat was set up as it was at the beginning of every year, though it didn't sing. Harry supposed that it only sang once a year or something; he didn't really care about the enchantments on the old hat.

"You are to put the hat on your head and it will sort you into one of the four houses," Professor McGonagall said before walking over to the staff table and sitting down in her usual seat to the left of the aged Headmaster. Harry pretended to look nervous as he walked over to the stool and sat down, placing the hat on top of his head. He could feel the object prodding at his Occlumency walls and let them down, careful that only the hat was given entrance.

:Hello: Harry said, grinning as he felt the hat's surprise. It opened its mouth to shout, but he cut in before it could :I wouldn't do that if I were you.:

Harry could feel the hat's hesitation before it asked,

:Why not:

:Founder's privilege, I'm afraid: Harry said::we're allowed to punish you fairly if you give away private information about someone in our house. As I'm Salazar Slytherin, which makes me automatically a Slytherin, if you say something I can punish you as I see fit. I've already got a lovely situation in mind involving fire and a sharp pair of scissors…And I already have reason to believe that you gave away private information about a Slytherin; a certain Tom Marvolo Riddle. How did the headmaster know that he was the heir of Slytherin:

Not that he was. The wards had chosen his mother but that didn't mean that he had Salazar's blood running through his veins. Riddle's mother had passed on Parseltongue to him but, as his relation to the Slytherin family was almost nonexistent, it would have completely died out within the next few generations.

:You're bluffing: the hat yelled, panicked::Godric removed you from all of the wards:

:You think that he could have removed me from every single ward: Harry asked, amused::Do you know how many there were? Do you think that he would waste his energy removing something as trivial as the right to punish you over the right to control parts of the castle? Not that he could: he added as an afterthought.

:I…But…: The hat seemed to be lost for words::You…:

:You can sort me now: Harry thought smugly.

The hat didn't bother to even pretend to do his usual routine of looking at his mind: You're cunning of course, that was your trademark, and intelligent. There's a great deal of talent here, and a…surprising loyalty towards your friends. And my, do you have bravery…wherever did that come from:

Harry scowled,

:That's my business, thank you very much.: The hat seemed about to say something snappish, but wisely kept its mouth (or mind) shut, remembering the earlier threat.

:Well then, better be…: the hat thought, finishing out loud, "SLYTHERIN-GRYFFINDOR."

There was a ringing silence for a few seconds before whispers sprang up around the hall like hundreds of snakes. Harry took the hat off and looked inquiringly at the headmaster. That seemed to snap the headmaster out of his shock and he stood up.

"Mr. Harrison, please meet me in my office at the end of dinner. In the meantime, you may sit at the Gryffindor table," Dumbledore said and the whispers stopped again, though a couple continued to pop up all over the hall.

Harry just shrugged and made his way over to the Gryffindor table. They all eyed him distrustfully and scooted together, so that the only empty space was at the end of the table. Harry really didn't care, so he sat down and served himself some food. The whole hall watched him eat a few bites before the whispers all sprang back again.

Soon, a couple people gathered up the courage to talk out loud and the Great Hall was filled with noise again. Harry hated that everyone was talking about him and hated the fact that everyone was watching him. Hundreds of pairs of watching eyes drilled into his back and made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

Harry closed his eyes, calming his nerves before opening them again. He ignored the stares, picking at his food and studying the people at the different tables. Snape was at the Slytherin table, of course, sitting at the end, apart from everyone else, which marked him as an outcast from his own house, much as it looked like Harry himself would be.

Harry sighed, the wards were not flawless and there were occasionally outcasts from Slytherin, although they were rare. In the middle of the table sat Lucius Malfoy (Harry was disappointed to note that he hadn't graduated yet), surrounded by many familiar faces: Narcissa and Bellatrix Black (his eyes hardened and he quickly looked away to stop himself from glaring), Crabbe and Goyle, and a couple of other people who looked vaguely familiar.

He didn't really recognize anyone at the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables; a couple looked familiar, but he didn't know any of them. The Gryffindor table was packed with familiar people: Remus Lupin was talking to Peter Pettigrew (Harry closed his eyes, willing himself to calm; he would deal with the traitorous rat, but now was not the time), who was sitting next to the other two marauders: Sirius Black and James Potter. His heart throbbed painfully at the sight of the two and he looked away quickly. His eyes caught a flash of auburn hair which was quickly identified as belonging to one Lily Evans. His mother. He looked away as his vision blurred and he scolded himself for being so weak. Harry also saw the Longbottoms, and, like at every other table, people who looked vaguely familiar, although he was a bit surprised not to see any Weasleys; he had assumed that they would be there when he saw Malfoy.

Curiously, he switched his vision so he could see auras. The bright auras burned his eyes, much like a light would do if one suddenly turned it on when your eyes were adjusted to darkness, and he switched back into normal vision and he blinked several times to rid his eyes of the bright auras that had temporarily been branded into them. The auras had never done that before, and he suspected that it had something to do with the magical balance (or lack of it).

Harry's eyes still burned and he kept them closed for a minute, moisture collecting at the corners of his eyes as his body feebly attempted to take away the pain. He finished his meal silently without looking up again, deciding not to try that again for a while. Nobody bothered him or talked to him and when Dumbledore excused the students, he made his was up the staff table.

"Ah, Mr. Harrison…Come with me," Dumbledore said when he spotted Harry. Dumbledore lead him to his office and entered; Harry automatically filing away the password 'sugar quills' for future reference. After they entered the office, Dumbledore sat down at his desk and Harry hesitantly sat down on one of the chairs.

"You present me with another unusual problem," Dumbledore said, "Never before has anyone been sorted into two houses. You can choose one of the houses now or we'll have to organize a mixed schedule for you."

Harry pretended to think for a minute,

"I can't choose."

"Very well," Dumbledore said, "We'll have to sort out your schedule then. You can sleep in the Gryffindor common room tonight. Professor McGonagall will see you tomorrow morning about your schedule. Your school things have been bought, and I'll send a teacher to bring you to Hogsmeade this weekend for robes and a few personal things. Do you have your wand?"

"Yes, sir," Harry said, pulling his phoenix feather wand out of his pocket, "But I don't have any money!"

"Don't worry, all your things have been paid for," Dumbledore reassured him.

"You didn't have to," Harry said, pretending to look embarrassed.

"It's quite all right. One last thing: what electives do you wish to take? We have Care of Magical Creatures, Arithmancy, the Study of Ancient Ruins, Muggle Studies, and Divination. You can probably fit two into your schedule."

"Er…Care of Magical Creatures and…Divination," Harry said, deciding to stay with his two usual subjects.

"Thank you. I think that's all for tonight," Dumbledore said, tapping his wand on a glowing, red sphere.

A minute later, the door was opened by Professor McGonagall, "You called, Albus?"

"Kindly show Mr. Harrison the way to the Gryffindor common room, Minerva," Professor Dumbledore said.

"Come with me, Mr. Harrison," Professor McGonagall said.

"Bye Professor Dumbledore," Harry said as they left the office. As he left the tower, he felt a mild tracking charm attach to his aura. He smirked, _let the old fool try_. The way to Gryffindor tower that Professor McGonagall showed him went through only the main corridors; they did not once go into one of the many secret passageways that Harry knew of.

When they got to Gryffindor tower, Professor McGonagall turned to look at him,

"You look remarkably like one of my own Gryffindors, James Potter; he's in your year. Anyway, the password to the common room is 'unity conquers'." The portrait swung open, "The boys' dormitories are on the left. You're a sixth year, so your bedroom should be on the sixth floor."

Harry thanked her and entered the common room, wincing at the bright shade of red covering the walls. He walked up the stairs to the sixth floor but hesitated at the door; some sort of commotion was taking place inside. Harry knocked on the door and the noise stopped abruptly. A couple seconds later, a disheveled Remus Lupin opened the door.

He looked surprised to see Harry there, but recovered quickly, "What do you want?"

"I'm supposed to sleep here, I think. This is the sixth year boy's room, right?" Harry asked, pretending to look confused.

"Er…Yeah, but there isn't an empty bed," Remus said. There was a sudden noise in back of them, and they turned to look. A gold and green bed appeared by the window. It didn't move the other beds and the room didn't expand, but it just…did somehow.

"Well, I guess that settles it," Harry said::Though I think that the red clashes with the green…I suppose I'll have to live with Gryffindor red.: The green of the bed turned red instantly. :Thank you.:

"What are you doing here?" Sirius asked, picking himself off of the ground. Apparently, the marauders had been in the middle of a pillow fight when he had knocked. Harry bit his tongue, trying desperately not to let any undesired emotion show on his face.

"I'm supposed to stay here tonight," Harry said, walking over to the bed, which had a couple robes and a pair of pajamas laid across it along with a small pile of school books.

"But you're a Slytherin!" Sirius exclaimed angrily, "Slytherins don't belong in Gryffindor!" _He's not Sirius, he's not Sirius_, Harry chanted over and over in his mind. The Sirius he knew had cared for him; wouldn't let such silly prejudices turn him against Harry. But deep inside, a tiny sliver of doubt had lodged itself into his mind.

"I thought the hat said I was a Slytherin _and_ a Gryffindor…" Harry said uncertainly.

"You can't be both a Slytherin and a Gryffindor!" Sirius hissed angrily, "Slytherins are sneaky, lying bastards who don't deserve to go to this school!" Harry's hands started to ball into fists, but he quickly squashed the anger that had flared up behind his masks.

"And Gryffindors are?" He asked coolly.

"Gryffindors are brave and noble. You can't be both!" Sirius said, glaring.

"Mm-hm," Harry said, mentally sneering at the biased words. He proceeded to ignore them, changing swiftly into his pajamas and sliding into his bed.

"Are you ignoring us?" James asked angrily. He had watched the fight between the new boy and Sirius silently, knowing that it was personal to Sirius. Sirius had been raised by Slytherin parents, and had a large grudge against anyone in the serpent house.

"Mm…If you say so," Harry said sleepily although in truth he wasn't tired at all. James was his father but he wasn't yet. Did that make James his father or not? Harry didn't know; he was so confused. He also wondered why seeing his father didn't affect him as much as seeing his mother. Perhaps it was merely because his last father was an absolute bastard that he had wanted nothing to do with.

James glared at him, whipping out his wand but Remus stopped him,

"Er…James, do you really think that that's the best idea? I mean, he's our roommate, and he _is_ a Gryffindor. Maybe he doesn't know about Slytherin being...Dark and all that." Harry was grateful for Remus's help, but couldn't help getting mad at him for categorizing his house so easily. _Slytherin house_, he corrected himself firmly. He hadn't made that mistake in a long time; perhaps he really was getting tired?

"Remus, don't tell me that your defending the slimy little worm," Sirius said, his eyes narrowing. It was almost amusing how quickly Sirius came up with insults according to Harry's house, especially since none of them were accurate.

"No!" Remus said quickly, "I'm just saying that there's a chance that he's not all bad!"

"Well, I'm not about to go off killing any innocent Muggles," Harry said, wrinkling his nose, "It's not like I'm into that sort of thing, not that you'd believe me."

"Why should we believe you?" Peter asked unpleasantly. Harry mentally snarled at him, but was careful not to let it show on his face.

"Why shouldn't you?" Harry asked, "Good night." He rolled over to face the wall.

"Hey, we're not finished with you!" Sirius exclaimed, but Harry ignored him. The marauders tried to get his attention, but he continued to ignore them until they gave up and went to sleep, though not before they had completely soaked his bed with water. Hogwarts indignantly dried his bed for him, though, and Harry soon drifted off into sleep.

Harry woke up in the middle of the night, gasping for air, visions of death and despair still flashing through his mind.

"Are you okay?" A voice whispered next to him. Harry jumped at the unexpected noise and turned towards the person in the bed next to him. Remus Lupin watched him with worried eyes.

"Just nightmares," Harry said, "Nothing new."

"Do you have them often?" Remus asked worriedly.

"Every night," Harry said bitterly, "Goodnight." He rolled over again and gradually drifted back to sleep.

Harry woke up early the next morning, even before the other boys. He changed quickly into the robes that Madam Pomfrey had given him, careful not to wake the marauders. When he was finished, he slipped his trunk, which had been in his pocket when he had traveled back in time, into a small, convenient pocket in his new robes.

He slipped out of the dormitories and through the portrait hole, wandering around aimlessly for a while and pretending to get lost several times for the sake of the tracking charm. He finally made his way down to the Great Hall, still a lot earlier than most students. He started to eat quickly, reading a charms book, hoping to finish breakfast before the marauders arrived.

His hopes were promptly destroyed as he heard the scuffling of running feet outside the door before it was flung wide open and the marauders paraded in. Harry groaned and snapped his book shut, knowing that the marauders wouldn't let him read quietly after the defiance that he had shown them the night before.

Harry grabbed a piece of toast and tried to leave, but it was too late; the marauders had spotted him.

"Where do you think you're going?" James asked rudely, blocking his path.

"I don't know…Maybe to the library? You do have a library, don't you?" Harry said, pretending to be clueless.

"Your not going anywhere after what you did last night!" Sirius said angrily.

"What did I do?" Harry asked. Sirius opened his mouth to say something, but a voice from behind them interrupted him.

"Is there a problem?" Dumbledore asked.

"No," Harry and the marauders said at the same time.

"Good," Dumbledore said, "Mr. Harrison, Mr. Lupin, may I have a word?"

"Sure," Harry said, shrugging.

Remus glanced at his friends, who shrugged, "All right."

"Excellent," Dumbledore said, "Come with me." He made his way across the hall to the Slytherin table, "Mr. Snape, may I have a word?"

Snape looked up, carefully appraising the situation as only Slytherins could, "Okay." Dumbledore lead them to his office and they all sat down.

"Mr. Lupin, Mr. Snape, as Mr. Harrison is new to this school, he will need someone to show him around. As you are both in his year and each in one of his houses, I have chosen you two for that job. Are there any objections?" Dumbledore asked. Snape didn't look too happy at working with Remus, but he kept his mouth shut. "Good! One of you two will have to be with him nearly all the time for the first couple weeks, is that understood?" Snape and Remus obediently nodded their heads, "You two may be excused. Mr. Harrison, please stay behind so we can discus your schedule." When Snape and Remus left, Dumbledore turned back to Harry, "I've constructed your schedule so for the first week, you have classes with the Gryffindors and you sleep with the Slytherins. Where you sit is your choice, and after this week, you have classes with the Slytherins and you sleep with the Gryffindors. Your schedule will switch at the end of every week, do you understand that?"

"Uh…Yeah, I think so," Harry said, although he understood perfectly.

"Then here's your schedule and a map of the castle," Dumbledore said, "I'm afraid that the map only shows the main corridors, so there are many shortcuts that aren't on it. Can you find your way to the transfiguration classroom alone?"

Harry studied the map carefully, "I think I can manage."

"You may be excused, Mr. Harrison," Dumbledore said.

"Bye," Harry said, standing up and leaving the office. He strolled casually down the hall, resisting the urge to whistle. Everything was going along fine.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Sorry, but updates may not appear weekly any more. My pace is slowing down, and I had to struggle to get this one out on time, but I still missed the deadline.

I'm begging anyone reading this for some prank ideas. Please? I really need some and I can't seem to think of any at the moment…


	9. Classes in the Past

I'm really sorry for the long wait, but so many things were happening…

_When the magic is back in balance and the animated wards come up, what will happen? If Harry gets again transported into is own time, the problem with the wards will still be there…_

_Harry has taken all this into account and will be suitably prepared when the time comes._

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

Also, my muses feed me many ideas that they picked up from other stories. If you can claim any of the ideas I put here and I can verify it by looking at your story, I'll give you credit. I've noticed my muses feeding me a lot of material from my favorite Harry is Salazar fanfic: Too Clever By Far by Gamana.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Nine: Classes in the Past**

Harry went directly to the Transfiguration classroom, pausing every once in a while as he knew that Dumbledore was still monitoring him through the tracking charm and it wouldn't do to make it too obvious that he knew his way so well already. By the time that he finally reached the classroom he was thoroughly bored, though did not allow a trace of this show through the look of interest that he had attached to his face.

He opened the door and peeked inside, his mind automatically registering where every person sat. It seemed like everyone had their own, self-appointed seats and forgetting where one belonged could be dangerous, although he needed to take that sort of thing more seriously with the Slytherins than with the Gryffindors. The room was small compared to some other rooms, as it held only the Gryffindor sixth years.

The marauders were in the back corner, near one of the large windows overlooking the grounds. Lily was sitting in front, her books beside her and an eager look on her face. Three girls, a blond who he recognized as Neville's mother and two brunettes were whispering in the back corner opposite the marauders; the rest of the seats were empty.

Harry carefully chose his seat in the front corner, in between Lily and a window and two seats in front of Sirius. He settled down in his selected place, pulling out books, quill, ink, and parchment. There was some whispering behind him and Remus got up, moving to the seat directly behind him. Harry turned around, giving the werewolf a questioning look.

"I'm supposed to show you around," Remus whispered, "I intend to do a good job." Harry wasn't sure whether to be grateful or annoyed but eventually decided on grateful. After all, he wasn't supposed to know his way around and having a guide would make it look less suspicious if he was actually able to get to his classes on time and by taking the correct route the first time round. There was also the bonus that having Remus as a guide might deter some of the marauder's pranks. Might.

Harry smiled gratefully,

"Thanks! I was worried that I'd spend all day wondering around. Dumbledore gave me some sort of map but it's so confusing!"

Transfiguration had not changed one bit, despite the twenty year difference. Professor McGonagall's teaching style remained the same despite the twenty year difference and, Harry suspected, so did the material they learned.

After transfiguration, Harry headed over to Divination. Remus did not accompany him as he did not take this class (Harry thought that this may have had something to do with the large number of silver instruments scattered around the room); his electives were Ancient Ruins and Care of Magical Creatures. Remus had instead hurriedly marked the way to the classroom on Harry's map (with suspicious ease for someone who supposedly didn't even know where it was), and given him careful instructions. One, Harry noticed with amusement, was 'If you see the painting of a mad little knight named Sir Cadogan, just ignore him and hurry away'.

Professor Fortuna was a wispy looking old witch who wore just as much jewelry as Trelawney, along with a similar shawl. Just as with Trelawney, the clothing gave her the delicate look of a large insect and her vocabulary was just as fancy. The way she spoke was very vague, although she managed not to sound as air-headed as the future professor.

Thankfully, none of the marauders save Pettigrew had joined the class out of support for their werewolf friend, so he didn't have to put up with them. With none of the other sixth year Gryffindor boys in the class, however, he quickly found himself surrounded by girls. Usually, Salazar wouldn't mind, preferring to ignore the other gender, but Harry had had bad experiences with giggling girls and the class passed very slowly and painfully for him. Honestly, at least a thousand years ago the girls had shown _some_ restraint!

Well, at least neither his mother nor Neville's mother were flirting with him. Harry shuddered, grateful for small favors. He didn't think he would be able to last long with something that disturbing going on. Harry stared blankly into his crystal ball, watching the mist swirl lazily inside the glass. Next to him, Lily shifted impatiently.

"Why did you sign up for Divination?" Harry asked quietly, after making sure that the teacher was on the other side of the room, "I'd have thought you were more the Arithmancy type."

Lily looked up in surprise at the sudden noise,

"But Divination sounded so much more _interesting_. It was a hard choice, actually, but I could only choose one of them. And I really wanted to do Care of Magical Creatures, but Ancient Runes sounded more challenging…" She sounded like she had wanted to talk to someone about that for a long time, and Harry was confused. Didn't she have any friends, anyone to talk to?

His mind flickered back to the scene he had witnessed in Snape's pensive and grimaced internally. Of course she didn't: no one wanted to be friends with a Gryffindor that took sides with a Slytherin; no one wanted to be friends with someone who broke up fights other people were enjoying; no one wanted to be friends with the person who James Potter wanted to date, in case it was taken the wrong way.

"It was pretty easy for me. I already know some Arithmancy and Ancient Runes," _More than most people do today_, he added silently, "But Divination is an easy class, and I love Care of Magical Creatures, although that second one probably has a lot to do with my previous teacher."

"What's it like?" Lily asked eagerly.

"Well, I haven't had a Care of Magical Creatures class at Hogwarts yet, but I've had two teachers," Harry said, careful of how he weaved his truths and lies together, "One of them was really fascinated with dangerous animals and didn't really understand that we, the students, were afraid of them. He was my friend, though, so I signed up for the class. The second one was more your average teacher. She was sort of strict but covered everything we needed to know for the OWLs quite thoroughly."

They chatted for the rest of the class, first about one thing and then another. At lunch, Lily sat next to him on one side and Remus sat on the other. It was noticeably the closest Lily had ever sat next to the marauders since the Welcoming Feast when they were first years.

At the end of lunch, they each went to charms together. Charms classes apparently hadn't changed in the twenty year time lapse either, and Harry, Lily and Remus had a pleasant conversation while learning a neat little charm to change someone's hair color. The charm, along with the other ones that they would learn over the next couple of weeks, was supposed to be used for disguises but, according to the plotting gleam in Sirius and James' eyes, they had other ideas.

Professor Assero was the Defense against the Dark Arts teacher and the Head of Slytherin House. She was looked down upon by many Slytherins because she was female and because she didn't teach potions, which was apparently traditional for the Slytherin professors to do. That she had abandoned potions to be the Defense against the Dark Arts teacher also offended many Slytherins, most noticeably those that Harry knew would one day become Death Eaters. As another bonus, she was fair and did not take points from any house without reason.

After an interesting lesson on magical shields they had to separate, Lily going off to Ancient Runes and Harry and Remus heading out onto the grounds for Care of Magical Creatures. The class was held, not by Hagrid's hut as Harry was used to, but on the open grass in front of the Forbidden Forest.

The Care of Magical Creatures teacher was Professor Kettleburn, as he had been for decades before Hagrid had taken over the job. He was an energetic little man (although not quite as little as Professor Flitwick) and Harry knew that in the next twenty years, the Professor would loose both his legs and an arm to various wild animals, a thought which simultaneously worried and amused him.

He was a good teacher and stressed caution and respect for even the smallest animal. Sirius and James complained loudly about the class as they seemed to often get detentions for messing around, though that might have had something to do with the fact that sixth year Slytherins were in the same class.

Harry stayed away from the Slytherins, not ready for a confrontation, and would have stayed as far away from the marauders as possible if it wasn't for Remus' determination to help him. He mostly ignored the marauders but sometimes when he turned, he caught them looking at him, identically scheming looks on their faces. It made him _very_ nervous and he was glad when the class was over and he could escape.

It was hard to get Remus to leave him alone but Harry was persistent, saying that he could find his way around reasonably, and he wanted the chance to explore. Remus protested that Harry could get easily lost but eventually the plotting look that his friends wore worried him enough that he had to go over and see what they were doing. When he got back, Harry was gone.

Sixth year Gryffindors had a free hour and Harry was ready to use this as much to his advantage as possible. He crept down to the dungeons, the unused part that only he knew about. Because the wards kept the house elves away, the hallway was dusty but a couple of quick charms fixed that.

He spent the hour inspecting, cleaning and repairing the maze of passageways that he knew like the back of his hand. He personally was quite proud of how far into the castle the dungeons extended; it was significantly further than anyone else knew, even the other founders. At this reminder, his eyes stung with unleashed tears that the student battled with fiercely.

It was over, done. It had been over for more than a thousand years. Then why did his eyes still sting with tears whenever he thought of the other founders?

Harry pushed the thoughts out of his head but the dungeons suddenly felt alien; so much had changed in a thousand years; the crumbling walls and dusty, unused rooms were proof of it. He had a personal connection with each and every little stone that he had used to make his dungeons and, on a larger scale, every stone or piece of wood that went into making Hogwarts a home to so many witches and wizards. They were so…old, so ancient and peaceful when, a thousand years ago, they had been young and thrumming with magical energy.

He headed towards the Great Hall, feeling out of place. He was too late to do anything; too late to fix anything that his own fear of telling the truth had caused. He was too late to apologize or try to repair his friendship with the other founders, however unlikely that may be. But then again, he was too early to live his life. Harry Potter, Golden Boy, Savior of the Light or not, he was still who he was. He was _not_ Evan Harrison, no matter how much he pretended.

Picking at his food, he missed the worried glances that Lily and Remus were shooting at him. He missed also the gleeful looks that James and Sirius traded and the feeling of the spell that gently brushed his aura, coming from the food he ate.

What Harry did _not_ miss was the slight tugging at his head as his hair coiled into black snakes of different breeds. At the same time, golden words few into the air above the teacher's table 'Brought to you by Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs'. Harry sat very still, not wanting to cause them to strike, as he tried to identify whether they were poisonous or not. The absence of mirrors in the Great Hall hindered his progress, but he used his reflection in his gold goblet.

Once he was sure that none of them were poisonous, Harry relaxed. As a Parselmouth, snakes naturally liked him and would hesitate to bite him, even if he didn't speak to them so the student determinedly ignored the creatures and went back to his meal, avoiding the cursed food.

By the end of the meal, nobody else's hair had changed at all and Harry was sure that the prank was aimed directly at him. Everyone was staring at him again, wondering what he would do next. He looked around the hall and noticed that Snape had already left. He wasn't surprised, but it did make his job harder.

He left the Great Hall towards the dungeons, and was surprised to encounter Snape just around the corner. They both stopped inches from a collision but both managed to look distinctly unruffled, as if they just happened to see each other on a stroll around the castle.

"I forgot that I was supposed to show you around the dungeons," Snape said, not bothering to look apologetic although he did appear a little embarrassed, "What have you done to your hair?"

"I was wondering where you ran off to," Harry said with a bit of false Gryffindor cheer, "The Marauders pranked my hair when I wasn't looking. At least they had the decency to choose pretty snakes," He added, causing the serpents to preen and hiss with delight. Like many animals, these had the intelligence to understand human speech although their mouths weren't built to pronounce it.

"Yes, well, follow me then," Snape didn't seem to know very much about showing people around, something that Harry had to wonder about. The head of Slytherin House would most certainly have to have some skill with showing the first years where everything was in the vast dungeons. Apart from that, Snape seemed to have gotten over his earlier curiosity and instead seemed annoyed that he had to act as Harry's guide.

"Slytherin Pride."

The hidden door slid open and Snape stepped inside. Harry stepped inside without hesitation, letting his aura flare up. Even though most couldn't read auras, they could still feel the power radiating off of the newcomer.

"Back so soon, Snape? Why aren't you off playing with your potions?" said the sneering voice that could only belong to a Malfoy. Sure enough, when Harry turned, he came face to face with Lucius Malfoy. Malfoy visibly measured the new kid up. "I'm sorry if Snape has been bothering you with his potions rubbish. The Snapes are an old, pureblood family but they have no wealth to speak of, so you'll have to understand that he isn't of a very high social status at all. You'll soon find out some wizarding families are much better than others, Harrison. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there."

Malfoy held out his hand to shake Harry's but Harry was too busy being amused at the repeat of his first year to care. He wondered if the Malfoys memorized the same lines from the cradle or if Draco had just been copying his father when he gave Harry the same speech.

"I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks," Harry said, repeating his past words.

Lucius glared at him,

"That's the biggest mistake that you'll ever make, Harrison."

"I'm trembling with fear," Harry said dryly as Lucius stalked off, before turning to Snape "So, where do I sleep?"

"You're sleeping in my room," Snape said.

"Sorry about that," Harry said, allowing a slightly apologetic look to cross his face.

"I'm sorry you have to share a room with me," Snape said. He was obviously used to people thinking along these lines and misinterpreted Harry's look.

"Oh, its fine with me, I'm just sorry about invading into your privacy like this. I'll see if I can get a different room."

Snape was surprised,

"_You're_ sorry about invading into _my_ privacy?"

"Well, I do value my own personal space and I…have nightmares sometimes. I don't want to keep anybody up," Harry said sincerely.

A bit of puzzlement flashed behind Snape's emotionless mask. Harry knew that it would mean trouble for him; once a Slytherin had a question, he or she would keep asking it until it was found out. He mentally filed away that he would have to be careful around Snape if he didn't want anyone finding out any of his secrets.

"Don't worry, it'll be fine," Snape said.

"You're sure?" Harry said. He wasn't sure if he could get another room from Dumbledore, but if he asked the castle…Well, he would at least put a couple of good silencing charms around his bed so that his screams wouldn't be heard. He wondered when his thoughts about his midnight screams had become so casual but decided it was best not to worry about this.

"Our room's over here," Snape said, leading the way to the medium sized dormitory. They didn't talk much as they got ready for bed and it was only once the lights were out (and several silencing charms were put up on each bed without the notice of each other) that they spoke.

"Thanks, Snape."

There was a pause,

"You may call me Severus."

"You may call me Evan," _Though that isn't my real name_, Harry added silently.

"Good night Evan."

"Good night Severus."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"He didn't even notice!" Sirius exclaimed, annoyed, to James and Peter, who were lying on their beds, "I can't believe it, all our hard work and careful planning…"

He was cut off by Remus storming into the dormitory,

"You pranked him! It was his first day!"

"He insulted us. Besides, he didn't even n…" Sirius started.

"I was supposed to be looking after him! Why didn't I even know about this? Is it that you don't trust me any more?" snapped the werewolf, looking more than slightly hurt.

"Look Moony, it's not as if we don't trust you but you were too close to the victim. We did that to Sirius when we pranked his girlfriend, remember," James interrupted.

"And it's not as if it's permanent," Peter said, "It'll wear off in a month." He seemed to find that extremely amusing and collapsed on his bed laughing. He abruptly stopped when Remus fixed him with a glare that could have melted glass.

"He's the new kid. It's his first day of classes. Why. Did. You. Prank. Him?" Remus ground out.

"It was nothing personal," Sirius said, "but he insulted us."

"Does it matter so much that someone annoyed you just a little bit that you had to go embarrass him in front of the entire school?" Remus snapped.

"We've done it to Snape plenty of times…" Sirius trailed off, "I can't believe it! You're actually defending the little brat!"

"How very observant of you! What did you think I've been doing for the last five minutes?"

"I thought you were just…you know, because it was your job," Sirius said with a shrug.

Remus growled at him, his teeth bared as some of his wolf instincts leaked into his human consciousness,

"Have you failed to notice that he's a human, a Gryffindor even? Or have you been too wrapped up in your anti-Slytherin attitude that you didn't even try to look that far?"

Sirius backed up nervously,

"Remus, I didn't…"

"I know perfectly well what you did and didn't mean," Remus snapped. He grabbed his hangings and pulled them so hard that he nearly ripped them from the bed.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

My muses have been working overtime…unfortunately, they managed to grab hold of ideas for two new stories and spend a lot of my time plotting out said stories which are currently multiplying…(sigh) Its inevitable that I write some of them out eventually, so sorry about that…

Please give me more prank ideas; they're all helpful.


	10. Wars of Pranks

Up front, I want to apologize for the incredibly long space between updates. My computer decided to brake down and there were so many complications…The guy kept saying that I'd get it back that weekend or whatever until dad finally gave up and got another one. Then I settled down for some serious writing time and guess what happened; not even a full day later the computer was messed up; something was loose in the power cord and it fused to something inside of the computer. But it's fixed. For now. And that was the shorter version sigh. Believe me, I feel just as bad about it as you; I was seriously fanfiction deprived.

Anyhow, I did fix a couple little things in each chapter, the biggest of which is that Draco can apparate now (and Harry still can't…or that's what they think) and also that there are still a couple weeks 'till the end of the summer.

And though I always claim my chapters aren't that good when they're first out, I feel that I'm a bit rusting after two whole months of not writing. So yeah, I'm not completely satisfied with this chapter. But it's extra long D

_When will the notion of Harry being a half-dark angel come back again?_

_Hm…I'm not sure. It probably won't be used during the Marauder's era…maybe a few references every once in a while._

_Are you going to have occasional scenes from the future?_

_This does open up a lot of interesting possibilities and fun scenes but the future is paused temporarily while Harry's in the Marauder's era. When he goes back to his time he'll be at the exact moment that he left it._

_How is Harry going to the past going to affect the future?_

_Well I can't really say. It's one of those 'supposed to happen' things, so nothing that we know happened is affected in any way but his future after he gets back to his own time is already so different because of the whole reincarnation thing it's hard to say._

_Can Harry use Snape's (future) group-apparate abilities as blackmail, and maybe let down the whole Gryff-mask? Will, in the past, Harry be unobtrusive and quiet, a small fry on the Slytherin hierarchy, or will something happen like someone tries to curse him and he winds up taking Lucius' spot as leader of the pack? How long until he finishes organizing his mind and becomes super again? Can you PLEASE stop with the cutting? What's up with Voldie? Is Harry going to kill him? Will Harry give him (Draco/Godric) his wand back? Who's Rowena and Helga? Or will they even be in the story at all? Do the other founders even know that Salazar suicided, or did they just think he disappeared? Will Harry help Sev get his spot as head of house back? Will Dumbledork still be headmaster?_

_Wow, that's a lot of questions in a single review. I'll try and answer as many as possible. Harry already decided not to use blackmail against Severus. After all, blackmail against a Slytherin is fighting fire with fire and likely to backfire. Evan's just that odd kid and the Slytherins don't really believe him to be one of them. At the time, Harry has no desire to prove himself to them and just leaves it at that; he's just ignored, not picked on. Harry can't truly get a hold on himself and organize his mind until he is at peace with himself or something like that. I don't like doing the cutting, either, but I can't stop…yet…Voldie will remain a mystery until I say so, as will Rowena and Helga's reincarnations (but they will have them). All the other founders know is that Salazar left and never came back. Everything else you just need to wait and see._

_Remus is being rather protective of the new-be, isn't he?_

_Well, Remus is protective of his friends and it is his job_ _to show Harry around and stuff. He feels a bit like he failed but letting Harry get pranked and letting him wander off like he did. Also, he sees that his friends are very wrong about some of their prejudices._

_What if Harry forgets at some point and talks to them (his snake hair)?_

_Though Harry may not be, Salazar has had practice not talking to snakes when others are around that don't know his secret. Thought that doesn't mean he never slips._

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Duh. If I did, do you think I would be writing fanfiction for it? It just doesn't make much sense, unless of course I had a couple experimental plotlines, which I don't. Well, I do, but it's all fanfiction. And I'm rambling.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Ten: Wars of Pranks**

_"And we can make it a big castle with lots of secret passageways and secret things!" Exclaimed Godric Gryffindor to his friends: Salazar Slytherin, Helga Hufflepuff, and Rowena Ravenclaw._

_His best friend, Salazar, smirked at him, "'Secret passageways and secret things'?" he drawled, "I thought we were building a school."_

_"The castle can be a school, you…"_

_"Now, boys, no fighting," Helga, ever the peacemaker, cut in before the argument had the chance to get nasty._

_Rowena, the logical one, took it from there, "Yes, a castle would be useful and different," Laying the book she was reading gently aside, she picked up a roll of parchment and quill, "but perhaps not practical. Castles can be easily defended in times of war, but if it is a large castle with all those things Godric described, the students could easily get lost. On the other hand…" _

"_At times of war?" Godric interrupted, gaping at her, "There hasn't been a war for about…"_

_As he counted the years in his head, Salazar interrupted him, "Think long term, Godric. Sure, it's peaceful now, but eventually there will be a war, and if we want our school to survive through it, we'll have to make it safe. Try planning ahead for once."_

"_You're always so…morbid," Godric said, pouting slightly._

"_But he's right," Rowena said, "Eventually there will be a war." That eventually would come a lot sooner than anyone expected._

"_What did you want a castle for if not the defense they provide?" Salazar asked._

"_But I like castles," Godric said dreamily, "They're so big and…fairy tail like." Salazar snorted, and Godric frowned, "But they are!"_

_Rowena looked up from the notes she had been jotting down, "What sort of castle is this going to be?" The others looked blankly at her. "Okay, we'll plan that sort of thing later. Basic layout?"_

"_We're _sure_ we want to divide the school up into 'houses'?" Salazar interrupted. The others frowned at him._

"_We've gone over this plenty of times," Godric said, looking slightly annoyed, "Houses will be good for the school. They'll help students find other people like themselves, and they'll encourage new students to get to know other members of their own house, as well as have some people to show them around."_

"_I'm sorry," Salazar said, looking at the floor, "It's just…I don't like the idea that we're _dividing_ up the school. It seems sort of…I don't know…" He trailed off. _

"_Basic layout?" Rowena asked again, breaking the silence._

"_Um…" Godric said, "Well…Classrooms, dormitories, a place to eat…" _

"_Helga, any ideas?" Rowena asked._

"_Um…Not really," Helga replied._

"_Salazar?"_

"_Towers?" Salazar asked after a thoughtful pause, "We never talked about those, but wouldn't they be important if the school were to be attacked? And they would be helpful if we are going to have an Astronomy class…What classes are we going to have anyways?"_

"_Good idea, I forgot about that…" Rowena said absently, her quill flying over the parchment, "So, what classes are we going to teach, and who's going to teach them?"_

"_I'm teaching Potions," Salazar said instantly._

_Godric rolled his eyes, "Well, obviously."_

"_I've thought about the classes for a while," Rowena said, "I suppose we should make it so that classes could be added or taken off, but I think there should be classes for: Magical Theory, Transfiguration, Charms, Defense, Healing, Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, Potions, Divination, Ancient Ruins, Magical History, and Astronomy."_

"_That's eleven subjects," Salazar said, "There are only four of us."_

"_We'll manage," Rowena said, "But we'll have to hire some more people that want to teach." Godric and Salazar exchanged a look behind her back. It had not crossed either of their minds that the teaching staff would include more than just the four friends. While Godric was a little surprised, Salazar was mentally whacking himself for overlooking such an obvious fact._

"_I want to teach defense," Godric said, "But is it magical defense or physical defense?"_

"_Both, I think," Rowena said, "Unless you want it to be just one of them. Is it all right if I teach Transfiguration?" The others just shrugged, not having any real talent in that class._

"_And I suppose I'll teach charms," Helga said thoughtfully._

"_Well, we've got four major ones, how are we going to split the other ones?" Salazar asked._

"_We can just split it up and see how it works," Godric said._

"_I'll teach Magical Theory, then," Rowena said._

"_Healing and Herbology if that's all right with everyone…" Helga said. Nobody spoke against it, so Rowena scribbled Helga's name next to the two chosen subjects. _

"_I want to teach Care of Magical Creatures!" Godric exclaimed._

"_I'm teaching Divination," Rowena said. The other three stared at her. "What? I like Divination," She said defensively._

"_You just don't seem the type," Salazar said, shaking his head._

"_Why not? Anyways, what are you going to teach? The only thing you've agreed to teach is Potions…" Rowena said._

_Salazar shrugged, "I don't really care. I'll take Ancient Runes and Astronomy, which leaves Godric with Magical History."_

"_If you're sure…" Rowena said, writing his name on her piece of parchment. They grouped around the parchment, taking in their responsibilities. After a minute of this, Rowena sighed, "We just don't have enough people. And we'd need all sorts of other staff; a school nurse, groundskeeper, some sort of hall monitor…The list goes on and on…"_

"_What about that girl a year behind us," Helga said, frowning slightly as she tried to recall the girl's name, "Brown hair and blue eyes…Alwilda something…She's pretty well known for her skills in battle magic, but she was also interested in magical theory…Do you think we could get her to teach it?"_

"_We might," Salazar said thoughtfully, "Do you think we could find at least a couple others?"_

"_Probably," Rowena said, scribbling down a couple more things on her piece of parchment. They sat there for a minute as she did so, thinking about the project that lay ahead of them._

"_If you don't mind, I'd like to design the dungeons," Salazar said. "Not real dungeons; just an underground portion of the castle," He added hurriedly, seeing their faces, "Um…How about this? We each have our own part of the castle. Our house's 'territory', we can call it. We can make it so none of us know exactly what's in each other's territory. The classes are neutral, of course. We can make it a sort of game to try and…" he paused, thinking, "Find a secret room! Each of us can have our own secret little room that the others try to find."_

"_That sounds like fun!" Godric exclaimed enthusiastically._

"_Sounds…interesting," Helga said._

_Rowena frowned, "Yes, but how are we going to build it? I thought we were going to link our power and have one person control it, but a huge castle? That would take ages! And now we each have a part of the school that only we know about…"_

_Salazar looked thoughtful, "The linking thing is a good idea; we just need to modify it a bit. It would take a while, but we each have a considerable amount of raw power at our disposal. We just control the link while we are making our own parts of the castle, I suppose. That way, nobody will know exactly what the other's parts of the castle's are like…"_

Harry woke as the vivid dream ended. It wasn't a nightmare, per say, but a memory of happy times more haunting than many nightmares. He rolled over and tried to sleep, but sleep didn't come to him, despite the early. He got up and got dressed so silently that someone right next to him would have to strain their ears to hear the rustling of fabric.

The night before, he had been worried about crushing the snakes that had previously been his hair by rolling over in his sleep, so he had used a quick charm to remove them from his head. Harry had never really seriously considered getting rid of the snakes because a) he did not like getting rid of transfigured snakes (or making them in the first place); b) he liked them; and c) he wanted the marauders to be overconfident, because it would make them easier to prank. Now Harry quickly reapplied them to his head, and headed down to the kitchens to ask a favor of the house elves.

He took the long way through the dungeons, giving him an opportunity to talk with the snakes, who agreed to sleep or at least be quiet during lessons, when nobody was around. He hesitated for a second next to the painting of the bowl of fruit that marked the entrance to the kitchens. If he pranked them now, they would probably guess it was him…But maybe not and he _really_ needed to prank someone. If he waited a bit, he could frame it on somebody else…Ah whatever. The Gryffindor impatience was starting to get to him.

When Harry got back to the room that he shared with Snape, he found his roommate still asleep (like he had expected him to be, it was still early in the morning, after all). He got out a potions book and began to go through it. He had had little time to read his books over the summer where nobody would see him and wonder when he had gotten them, so he still knew little about modern potions. Harry had not had time the day before to visit the library, and he couldn't read any of his own books, since he wasn't supposed to have any, so he settled for the potions book that he had found on his bed in Gryffindor tower along with the rest of his school books.

Severus woke an hour later and Harry noted that he was an early riser. In the future, that could be the valuable information as he couldn't afford a mistake of any kind.

"Early riser?" Snape asked, looked the tiniest bit surprised that Harry had woken up so early.

"Well, its pretty exiting, you know. This new school and all," Harry replied smoothly.

They got ready for classes and made their way to the Great Hall together. Severus sat at the Slytherin table, of course, and Harry, after a minute's hesitation, did the same. They chatted as they ate but, in the natural manner of Slytherins, kept their voices down so as not to be overheard.

Halfway through a sentence, Severus stopped talking and stiffened slightly. He quickly resumed conversation, though it seemed a little more forced. Harry looked at Severus questioningly and then in the direction of his gaze. The Marauders were entering the Great Hall. Harry had to wonder how they had such an effect on Severus that the Slytherin would react like that. Of course, it was usually wise to keep an eye on pranksters when they were around, for they rarely pranked out of their range of sight, especially the more arrogant ones.

Harry noticed that Remus seemed a bit more…distant with the other Marauders than the previous day. Being the bright little Slytherin that he was, it did not take Harry very long to assume that they had a fight, or even the subject of the fight. He felt a little bit guilty about breaking up the Marauders, but they really did behave like jerks towards Slytherins.

Remus looked around the hall just then and caught Harry's eye. The slightly Gryffindorish Slytherin watched a brief exchange of words between the Marauders before Remus hurried over to the Slytherin table. The werewolf didn't sit down (that would have been rude and extremely hazardous to his health) and declined Harry's invitation to do so. He seemed extremely nervous to be in Slytherin territory, but not more so than Severus who all but stopped breathing. Oh right, the werewolf incident. That would explain it.

"Hi Remus!" Harry said, instantly more Gryffindor, "Did you sleep well?"

"Very well, thank you…How about you?" Remus asked, remembering the nightmare that 'Evan' had had a couple nights ago.

"I had a very pleasant dream, thank you for asking," Harry said politely.

"Er…Yeah. Um…So I'll meet you after breakfast to show you the way to our first class?" Remus asked.

"Thanks, but its Potions and both of my houses are taking it together. I'm sure that Severus can show me the way," Remus did not miss the first name usage, "It's more convenient that way. But I'll see you in Potions, or at least in the next class which is…History of Magic, I think."

"Okay, I'll see you then," Remus hurried back to the Gryffindor table. He did not talk much to the other Marauders and had curiously started up a conversation with Lily Evans by the end of the meal, despite James's jealous glares.

"Why are you so friendly with him?" Severus asked venomously as he glared at the Gryffindor's retreating back.

"Well it wouldn't due to upset one of my guides, would it," Harry said casually, "And he's quite nice. Politer than most of the rest of the Gryffindors, at least."

"He's a…"

"Gryffindor, I know," Harry interrupted Severus, perfectly aware that 'Gryffindor' was not the word that was about to come out of the Slytherin's mouth, "But some Gryffindors aren't that bad, you know."

Severus just made a noise of disgust and continued eating his breakfast, though he did not attempt to resume the conversation. Nevertheless, by the end of breakfast they were talking again and they chatted quite merrily all the way down to the Potions classroom.

Professor Blythe, Harry could tell at first glance, knew very little about Potions. Oh, she was nice enough, but her type was more adept at teaching a less dangerous class, like Charms or Herbology. Those classes were dangerous enough as well, of course, but a Potions professor needs a thorough knowledge of what ingredients reacted violently with each other and a strong enough power over the students that they did not fool around; this teacher had neither. In less words, the atmosphere for this class was very similar to the one in Charms, which is really not a good thing when each student is working with dangerous ingredients.

She had started the class off with a 'Grab a partner, dears, we're brewing Navitas potions today' and apart from that had not said more than a handful of words of the subject. Harry immediately paired up with Snape, as did James and Sirius. Remus, however, paired up with Lily, leaving his usual partner, Peter, in an awkward position. In the end, he paired up with the girl that Lily usually worked with, one of Neville's mom's friends.

Severus and Harry worked quite well together, and each was delighted to find out about the other's extensive knowledge of potions. Snape openly displayed his disapproval with Professor Blythe, as did most other Slytherins, and spent a good portion of the class criticizing the professor and telling Harry exactly what _he'd_ do if _he_ was the Potions professor. Harry added his own comments, just barely keeping the laughter from his face and voice.

Potions ended quickly and they said goodbye to each other before each heading to their respective classes. Harry caught up with Remus only a short while later and they went to History of Magic together. Remus seemed a bit wary of around Harry, but after a short while, Harry's open Gryffindorishness set him at ease.

History of Magic was as boring as ever but Harry spent most of it passing notes to Remus and sometimes Lily, who, by her notes, disapproved of passing notes in class but admitted that the way Binns taught it, it would be a lot easier to just look up the material later. It was one of the most enjoyable History of Magic classes he had ever had, even counting all the ones with Ron and Hermione.

After the class, they went down to lunch, where Harry was faced with the very difficult decision of choosing which house to sit with for lunch. He didn't want to abandon Remus and Lily again so soon, but at least they had each other to talk to (and, perhaps, the Marauders), while Severus couldn't talk to anyone around him. In the end, he promised the two Gryffindors that he would sit with them for dinner and went across the hall to sit at the Slytherin table. Severus was disgruntled with Harry's promise to sit at the Gryffindor table at dinner but reluctantly appreciated the fact that Harry had chosen to sit with him for lunch and the conversation soon turned to a more cheerful subject. It was then that Severus brought up a very interesting subject.

"It's all because of that stupid rulebook!" Severus exclaimed angrily, glaring across the hall at the Marauders, "They shouldn't be able to get away with hexing everybody left and right!"

"Rulebook?" Harry asked, interested.

"Everybody knows that Potter, Black, Lupin, and Pettegrew are the Marauders, even though it's supposed to be some big secret. But there's this rulebook, supposedly written by the 'first Marauders of Hogwarts' or something like that. It pretty much gives them the right to prank anybody as long as it doesn't interfere in any way with homework or classes. They practically worship the thing."

Harry nearly choked on his food. He didn't think that that old thing was still around. Godric and Salazar had made it pretty much as a joke, but later decided that it was a pretty good idea and wove the rules it into the wards. They had signed it using their nicknames, which was where Harry assumed that the Marauders derived their own names. Salazar had been Silverfang, Godric had been Goldenclaw (affectionately known as 'Tufty'…Oh how he had hated it), Rowena had been Talon, and Helga had been Stripe. Rowena had been the one who had made them agree to put in the part about homework and classes…He was nearly crying again. Why did something from the past pop up whenever he thought he had everything resolved?

"Evan?" Severus asked, concerned with his companion's sudden silence.

"Hm? Oh I was just thinking about that. Do you think we could set up a prank or two? I mean, if we can't be caught…" Harry said, thankful that his mask hadn't slipped.

"You know, we _could_!" Severus said, "But…I don't know…I've never pranked anybody…"

"Then you've really got to try it! Come on it'll be fun!" Harry added, seeing the uncertain look on Severus's face, "We could completely humiliate the Marauders; I bet they've not used to rivalry."

"Rivalry?" Severus said disbelievingly, "You want to rival the Marauders in a…a prank war or something?"

"It sounds like fun, doesn't it?" Harry asked brightly.

"You're insane! Completely and totally insane!" Severus exclaimed, just barely managing to keep his voice down, "I don't know a thing about pranking!"

"Then I could teach you!" Harry said enthusiastically.

"You're mad," Severus repeated. There was a pause in the conversation, "You really could teach me?"

"Sure, it'll be fun!" Harry said. He glanced at his watch, "But that'll have to wait until later. I have to go to Herbology." Severus looked at his own watch, cursed, and hurriedly got up. He left the Great Hall nearly at a run, calling a goodbye as he went.

"I'll see you sometime tonight," Harry called, slinging his bag over his shoulder. He ran out towards the grounds and was lucky enough to meet up with Remus and Lily. The Marauders (apart from Remus) were glaring daggers at him, but Harry pretended not to notice.

Herbology and the free period after (sixth years seemed to have a free period before dinner everyday to work on the large amount of homework that they were assigned) passed extremely quickly. Harry didn't manage to slip off again, as both Remus and Lily cornered him and forced him to get started on his homework.

Sooner than Harry thought was possible, it was time for dinner. He sat between Lily and Remus again and they chatted quite merrily, though Harry couldn't help but feel a bit guilty still about leaving Severus alone at the Slytherin table.

"Am I the only one of us who thinks the Marauders are okay?" Harry asked in disbelief, halfway through dinner.

"Oh come on Evan, they pranked you! You must see that they're total jerks!" Lily exclaimed angrily, "Right Remus? You know them best."

Remus looked uncomfortable,

"I don't know…They are my friends, you know. They may behave like jerks, but they're the best friends anyone could hope for." He was starting to feel sorry about getting mad at them like that. They had stuck by him even when the figured out he was a werewolf, and had even become illegal Animagi for him. Remus decided that he would talk to them that night, apologize.

Lily was shaking here head in disbelief,

"They're arrogant jerks!"

"Maybe you just need to get to know them better," Harry suggested with a smirk, and couldn't help the Muggle children's song that popped into his head, though he was wise enough not to repeat it out loud. He valued his health, after all. _Lily and James sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G…_

Lily was about to reply when a sudden hush fell over the Great Hall. She turned to look, gasped, and started giggling. James had giant antlers sticking out of his head, and his ears had turned deer-like and covered with light brown fur. His feet seemed to be swelling up (Harry was forcibly reminded of Aunt Marge) but when they burst free of his shoes it became apparent that they were _hooves_. James wasn't the only one affected; Sirius was completely covered in black fur with a pair of dog ears and a dog's tail sticking out of the seat of his pants; Peter had a long, rat's tail, whiskers, and rat's ears; and Remus had only a pair of wolf ears and a wolf's tail. Harry had been careful with Remus's charms so he did not appear to wolf-like but more of a dog.

Lily stopped laughing when she saw Remus had been similarly charmed, 

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to laugh at you!" But Remus wasn't paying attention; his gaze was fixed above the teacher's table, where silver writing hung in the air in the same fashion as the writing that the Marauders used to mark their pranks.

'To Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs:

For too long have you tormented the school with your pranks which have, of late, become more personal to many students. Pranks are fun, yes, but not so much for those at the receiving end. Last night was the last straw; you actually targeted a student in your own house, which is against to the Marauder's Code. You may say 'but he's not really in our house, is he?' He _is_ in both Gryffindor and Slytherin; did not the Sorting Hat itself say so? I leave your fate to the aforementioned Slytherin-Gryffindor.

Enjoy your new look (it lasts as long as his does),

Silverfang'

Harry had, of course, written this himself, and he was quite proud of the effect that it had on the students. The entire Great Hall was so quiet you probably _could_ hear a pin drop.

"Well," He said, standing up, "I suppose it is up to me to decide what to do with you. I do regret that I don't know more about this 'Marauder's code'. I suppose we shall have to settle this the way I choose fit. A full out prank war until a truce is called," he glanced at Remus, "Should be fun, eh Remus? And now, ladies and gents, I'm going to bed. Good night to you all." And with that, he left the Great Hall down to the dungeons. He could hear the roar of hundreds of students shouting, cheering, and talking loudly to each other to be heard over the turmoil.

Twenty minutes later, Severus walked into their room to find Harry lying on his bed, reading a book.

"What was _that_?" he asked.

"_That_," Harry said, "Was fun. Oh, I gotta do that again sometime."

"You're crazy," Severus said, shaking his head, "So, am I still in?"

"Of course," Harry said, "If you want to."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

"Look, guys, I'm sorry about hanging around with Evan today," Remus said to his friends. They were back in their dorms, each on their respective bed except for Sirius, who was pacing. Normally, James would be pacing, but the hooves were distracting so Sirius had taken over.

"Excused," Sirius said at once, "I…I know that I was a bit…prejudiced against Evan because he's a Slytherin and all…But you know, he isn't that bad. A prank war! We haven't had a challenge forever!" Remus had to smile. They could be arrogant, prejudiced jerks sometimes, but there weren't better friends in the world.

"_I_ still don't understand how you managed to talk to Lily so much," James said sulkily.

"But you know what's _annoying_ about him?" Sirius asked, ignoring James, "He has had snaked for hair for only a day and he pretends they don't exist. And the snakes just went on sleeping all day! I mean, what was the _point_ of that prank?"

"It started the prank war, remember," Remus said, "But I suppose that we should release his prank or we'll be stuck like this for a while."

"About this prank war…" James started. The Marauders had been challenged, and they had every intention of winning.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

And so the prank war has begun. I need prank ideas for anytime, anyplace. Prank war rules are a lot more open than normal pranking rules, but most pranks will be pulled in the Great Hall during dinner.

You know, any one of you can e-mail me to chat anytime. My e-mail address is at a link from my profile. I get so bored over here some times. Thinks of ways to bribe you You can pester me to update…I might even give you a few hints about later in the story…


	11. Marauder's Nightmare

This is probably going to be my last update before HBP comes out; after that I'll probably be freaking out because all of my stories will then be AU, so don't expect an update too soon after that (I'll be busy rereading it and twisting it to my advantage). Just cross your fingers that JK Rowling doesn't dis-prove Salazar!Harry stories in it or I'll be crushed.

_Is this going to affect the future? Or did this already happen and Harry is just making sure that it does happen?_

_It does affect the future but in a it-already-happened sort of way. He doesn't know what happened so he's not purposely making anything happen. On the other hand, he knows not to prevent anything he knows is going to happen._

_Is it actually true about the fact that James and his friends weren't the first Marauders?_

_No, that's just something that I made up. _

_How will Harry be in the past? When will Harry's parents get married/ will they find out that Harry's their future son? _

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. I'd _like_ to own Harry Potter but it's not as if I _do_. Got it?

Notice thing:

I do not own the idea of Harry Potter being Salazar Slytherin. Therefore, as far as I know, you are all allowed to write your own. In fact I encourage it! I love these fics and there aren't enough of them at the moment as far as I'm concerned. I'm even making a C2 for them! Just be sure that you don't copy my plot…I mean little things like Draco is Godric you _could_ use but I do prefer you use your own ideas. Serphenia as the Basilisk's name is completely mine…Though I suppose you could use it and I prefer credit for it. If you have any questions about this you can just ask.

Enjoy, this is a huge chapter!

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Eleven: Marauder's Nightmare**

Harry woke up particularly early the next day and woke Severus. They spent almost a full hour plotting their 'first' prank (for nobody knew that the first prank was indeed Harry's) and how to pull it off. They then spent another half hour brainstorming for future pranks. Harry took up Rowena's job of writing down everything for future reference; cursing and jinxing every page of the notebook when he finished to make sure that the Marauders couldn't lay a finger on the book, let alone read it.

When they were done planning exactly which spells to use, when they would set them, and so on, Harry brought up a topic of conversation that Severus had not yet considered,

"So what should our nicknames be?"

"Nicknames?" Severus asked blankly.

"Yeah, we need nicknames so we can sign our pranks...You know, like the Marauders did when they pranked my hair and Silverfang did last night…" Harry said, trying to think of possible nicknames for the two of them.

"But why do we need nicknames when everybody knows it's us?" Severus asked.

"It's tradition," Harry said, shrugging, "Why question it?"

"But why…"

"Dagger," Harry interrupted.

"What?"

"I want to be called Dagger," Harry said.

"Why?" Severus asked curiously.

"Doesn't matter," Harry said, avoiding the question. The answers were all too personal. "Now the question is what is your nickname going to be?"

"I don't want a nickname!" Severus snapped. Harry briefly considered begging but gave up on it before he started and instead chose the more pushy approach.

"I don't care," Harry said stubbornly, "You need a nickname so I'm going to think of one for you." Severus made an angry noise somewhere between a huff and a growl but otherwise remained silent.

"I know!" Harry exclaimed so exuberantly and suddenly that Severus jumped and nearly fell off of his bed, "Poison!"

"Poison?" Severus asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Well I know it's not the most original nickname in the history of nicknames but it's pretty good. Anyways, your welcome to think of something better (before we actually pull off the prank that is) if you can. Or you can just add something to poison, it doesn't matter much…"

"Okay, okay I get it already!" Severus snapped, "Poison is fine."

They still had a couple hours until they really needed to be at breakfast, so they decided to just stay in the room and do a little schoolwork. Harry couldn't concentrate though; not so soon after having his Marauder side reawakened. Soon he had opened the journal again and was scribbling madly in it. Severus too became bored of his work and walked across the room to take a peek at whatever Evan was doing.

"I was thinking," Harry said, not looking up, "That our first prank is brilliant, it really is, but why not catch the Marauders while their guards are down? If we move the prank we already planned to breakfast (not the ideal time for pranking, I know, but then they'll be stuck with it all day) then we can set up all sorts of little pranks…And even another big one at dinner if we have time to plan it." Severus was smirking, watching the pages filling up with Evans writing and, occasionally, small diagrams.

"That would be extremely cruel," he commented thoughtfully, "But sure, why not? It sounds fun!" With smirks comparable only to the Weasley twins before a particularly nasty prank, the two once again began planning to make the day pure hell for the Marauders.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The Marauders were not morning people; it was a well known fact in the Gryffindor common room. In fact, many Gryffindors had long ago given up on alarm clocks (which had to be specially ordered from magical stores as Muggle ones would useless upon entering the Hogwarts grounds) as the loud, shrill noises that they emitted were often covered up by the racket that went on inside the sixth year boy's dormitories.

This gave Severus and Harry (who had yet to think up any sort of team name) a definite advantage over the Marauders. The Marauders set up pranks mostly at night which allowed more time for them to be discovered, could get them into serious trouble for being out after curfew, and left them sleepy in the morning; more vulnerable to pranks.

Even with these disadvantages, the Marauders did not usually wake up before absolutely necessary (probably because they were not used to any form of competition) and as such any Gryffindor (save the first years) would have been absolutely shocked to see what happened in the sixth year boy's dormitories on the morning of the day that their unnamed adversaries planned to make living hell for them.

Remus Lupin, the werewolf and bookworm Marauder known as Moony to his close friends, woke up much earlier than usual and woke the other Marauders (as was custom). Without him the other Marauders would never make it to breakfast on time, stubbornly defying alarm clocks and rigged buckets of water alike to get a 'few minutes' sleep.

The lycanthrope spent a good half hour trying to wake up his friends without alerting anyone else of their early rising. The sad result was: you can't wake a Marauder without making a considerable amount of noise. In the end, he cast several of the strongest silencing charms he knew on the room before resorting to his usual method of tearing sheets off of beds, pouring buckets of water over random sleeping Marauders, and shouting things like 'We've slept halfway through Transfiguration; McGonagall's going to kill us!' or 'Ah! Prongs wake up, the common room's on fire!' to try and wake up the sleeping Marauders.

Eventually he got the other three Marauders up and dressed as well as thoroughly annoyed at a certain chocolate addicted werewolf. James was a little more disgruntled than the others, having faced the problem of taking a shirt off with a pair of gigantic antler sticking out of his head. Once he had managed to take off the (now torn) shirt he had had to figure out how to put another shirt on.

Finally, when the other Marauders were all ready to go, Remus grabbed James invisibility cloak and the Marauder's map, removed the silencing charms from their dormitory, and dragged the still groggy Marauders to The Room. The Marauders had never really felt the need to actually name The Room, though they occasionally called it the Marauder's Lair or other such titles. Though they shared their dormitory it was constantly searched by McGonagall in her attempts to hinder the Marauders pranks and, anyway, they enjoyed having a _secret_ room where they could plot without being distracted or interrupted.

The Marauders had begun their search for an abandoned classroom that they could use when they first started pranking, though eventually lost hope on finding anything 'just right'. They had stumbled across The Room a few years previous when they were plotting out the Marauder's map and instantly agreed that the small, round tower was exactly what they were looking for. Over the years they had personalized the room; transfiguring some furniture with plenty of red and gold.

Now the Marauders filed into the room, each flopping onto their preferred chairs; Remus sat in the chair by the desk, Peter onto a comfortable armchair, and James and Sirius in beanbags. Remus reached into the desk and pulled out four small, leather-bound journals and a handful of quills and distributed them to the proper Marauders.

The journals were a masterpiece of charms on Remus's part. They were designed after The Marauder's Rulebook in certain aspects. Apart from stating all pranking rules, The Marauder's Rulebook housed the memories and personalities of its makers; much like the Marauder's Map, though a lot stronger as the original Marauders had a lot more knowledge of the complex spells needed.

It had been quite exciting when the Marauders (MWPP) had found out that they could actually converse with _the_ Silverfang, Goldenclaw, Talon, and Stripe (though they didn't know their true identities). The original Marauders had given them advice on pranks, taught them a few pranking spells, and pointed out quite a few secret passage ways that the Marauders had known nothing about. Of course before they could do anything Remus had to put a very complex translating charm on the book, as the original Marauders didn't speak English.

Peter had, in an unusual display of genius, proposed connecting other books to the rulebook so that they would not have to fight over the small one when they wanted to write and crowd around the desk whenever they wanted to discuss pranks (plus the original journal was old and very fragile). Remus had done the spellwork, even adding a small charm so they each had their own ink color…Without the use of ink (for, as Peter had demonstrated, it could get everywhere and was hard to clean up). The journals all had their owner's name on the cover so they weren't mixed up.

_We've got a bit of a problem here_, Remus started. His ink had originally been blue but he had been mixed up with Talon (who also used blue ink) too much and had, in the end, switched to bronze (well, brown, actually) in honor of his Ravenclawness, or so the other Marauders said.

_Oh, really?_ Remus could tell by the handwriting and color (green) that it was Silverfang that answered him, _what's the problem?_

_Um well_, Sirius started, not quite sure how to phrase it, _there's this new kid, right? No idea where he came from or how he got here, but he's in our year. _(Sirius and James had battled fiercely for the color gold and Sirius had, in the end, won it. James chose instead purple ink in support of his favorite Quidditch team, Pride of Portree)

_That's odd_, Talon interrupted, _I don't think there' _ever_ been a transfer student in Hogwarts before._

_Yeah, well_, Sirius said, _as, I said, we have no idea where he came from. His name's Evan Harrison. His name's not from a wizarding family, as far as I can tell._

_What house is he in?_ Silverfang asked curiously.

_I was getting to that_, Sirius said, _somehow he got himself into 'Slytherin-Gryffindor'. _

_I don't think that ever happened before either_, Talon said.

_No, you don't say_, Silverfang said.

_I was just commenting, no need to be sarcastic!_ Talon snapped back.

_Anyways_, James cut in, taking up the story_, he slept in our dorm while the Headmaster was working out a schedule. He was rather rude. And Slytherinish. _

_Well we were being rather rude to him in the first place, Prongs_, Remus reminded him.

_He made friends with Moony_, Peter added in orange ink (tribute to the Chudley Cannons), _and Lily. _

_Oh? _Black ink; Stripe had decided to enter the conversation.

_Moony and Snivellus were assigned to show him around the castle_, Peter explained, _no idea how he became friends with Lily. Prongs has been trying for ages._

_So what's the trouble, _Silverfang asked, _is Prongs jealous?_

_Yes,_ three people wrote, while James scribbled out 'No!'

_Admit it, you are, Prongs,_ Sirius said, _but that's not the problem._

_Well then,_ Red ink (Goldenclaw) asked, impatiently, _what's the matter? _There was no immediate answer.

_They pranked him_, Remus said_, I didn't have anything to do with it._

_WHAT? _Large, bold green ink asked. It was the closest Silverfang could do to yelling and it made the Marauders cringe away from their journals. _But he was in you house!_

_They turned his hair into snakes_, Remus added_, black snakes, as his hair is black._

_Did anyone get hurt?_ Stripe asked.

_Oh no, we remembered Silverfang's lectures well enough_, James said_, they were non-poisonous and they didn't even bite anyone. Well, as far as we know. I mean, they might have bitten Harrison sometime…_

_Anyways_, Remus said, _the problem is we were pranked back. Turned halfway into our Animagus forms. It was signed by someone claiming to be Silverfang._ There was silence at the other side of the journals.

_Well, what was the message?_ Silverfang asked.

Remus repeated what he could remember,

_And then Evan stood up and challenged _us_ to a prank war!_

_Does he know of your reputation?_ Goldenclaw asked.

_Undoubtedly_, James wrote, sourly, _he was pretty cozy with Snivellus all day too, when he wasn't with Remus and Lily. _There was another silence, while the original Marauders processed the information.

_Ah_, Silverfang said_, our little Pronglet_ is_ jealous. _

_But do you have any advice?_ Sirius asked, ignoring James's scribbled denial.

_Well, are you going to agree to the prank war?_ Stripe asked.

_Of course!_ Sirius said

_Then we can't help you_, Talon said_, out of the question. It's against the rules. We can recommend books and perhaps teach you a spell or two but no more than that. You have to come up with everything on you own._

_But was it really Silverfang that wrote that?_ Remus asked.

_I don't know_, Silverfang wrote, _as we have undoubtedly explained before, we aren't the real people. We have their memories (up to some point) and their behaviors but no more than that. I'm pretty sure we're all dead by now but there may have been other 'memories' of us woven into the wards after this book was created._

_Oh_, Remus said. He did remember hearing something like that, but this was a lot more detailed.

_But I can give you a bit of advice_, Goldenclaw said, _if Silverfang really cast that spell, there's no way you're going to change back unless you release the spell on Evan's hair._

_Okay_, Remus said, _Bye._ The Marauders (both original and not-so-original) said their good byes before the not-so-original Marauders closed their journals. Just before Remus closed his, he noticed that the original Marauders were continuing their conversation in their native language. He shrugged and turned back to his companions.

"That was interesting."

Sirius snorted,

"That was an understatement, Moony."

"Do you think it really was Silverfang who pranked us?" Peter asked.

"No idea," James asked, "Maybe, maybe not."

"So, how do we release the spell?" Sirius asked. They'd never actually had to do it before. Peter looked blank and James shrugged.

"I'll do it," Remus said, "Of course, it would be a lot easier if Evan was near us but I don't suppose you want to go into breakfast looking like that."

"Definitely not," James said, while Sirius nodded his agreement.

"Thought so." Remus tried to remember the spell and, once he managed to pull it to the front of his mind, performed it. At once, the Marauders changed back to normal. "Impressive. Silverfang would have had to tie the charm we put on Evan to the charms he put on us, so when one is canceled, so is the other. That's some pretty impressive magic."

"Spare us the lecture, Moony," Sirius said, "Please?"

"I'm just saying that that's _really _advanced magic," Remus said.

"I really don't car how advanced the magic is," Peter said, "I'm starving. Can we _please_ go eat now?"

"It's still early," Remus said, "Nobody's going to be there for about half an hour. Well, maybe some Ravenclaws…"

In the end the end they decided to go anyways, even though they hadn't set up any pranks yet. As Sirius had said, Evan couldn't have time to set up any pranks this early in the morning and, anyways, the Marauders had the advantage of knowing their way around the school. They headed down to the Great Hall (happily fur-less, and antler-less, and nice and normal), laughing and joking as was their style.

As they burst into the Great Hall, they were startled to notice Evan and Snape chatting quietly at the Slytherin table. They glanced at each other, silently agreed the pair must be mental to have woken up that early, shrugged, and sat down at the Gryffindor table. They were even more unnerved to note that, right before they started digging into their food, Evan raised his glass of pumpkin juice in a silent toast, smirked in a peculiar way that set the hairs on the back of the Marauders necks on end, and finished the altogether menacing gesture with a little wave to Remus.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Severus watched the Marauders cross the hall with barely contained glee. Despite the fact that they couldn't set their prank off yet (it was much too early and there were too few people around) the anticipation gave him almost as much joy as the actual prank was about to.

"I think you scared them," he commented, watching the Marauders turn white after Evan's little gesture, "Couldn't have scared them too bad, though; they're still eating."

Evan shrugged,

"No force on Earth that I have yet encountered could stop a Gryffindor from eating if the food's right in front of them and they don't have a reason not to."

"That's probably true," Severus said, "I don't claim to be an expert on Gryffindor behavior."

"It would be weird if you did," Evan said, "Your Slytherin through and through. Though I suppose it would be Slytherin anyways, know the enemy and all that stuff."

His companion shot him an amused glance,

"Your right, of course."

"Of course," Evan echoed. There was a silence and then it was his turn to shoot his friend an amused glance, "Stay still, your practically fidgeting. It'll be time to set off the prank soon enough."

"I'm not fidgeting," Severus said, scowling.

"Of course," Evan said, grinning.

Time moved by painfully slow for Severus. He checked his watch constantly and could almost swear that it was moving backwards. Evan was humming a song that Severus didn't recognize, eating and reading and working on an essay that Professor Assero had assigned before he had arrived.

Finally the hall began to fill up until the tables were all filled with students. He hadn't yet asked Evan when they could set it off, not wanting to be accused of fidgeting or whining or whatever else there was to be accused of.

Presently, Evan looked up from his work,

"The hall looks pretty full, doesn't it? I suppose it's time to set it off. Would you like to?"

"No, you do it," Severus said, "I don't know how."

Evan shrugged,

"Remind me to teach you next time." He pulled his wand out of seemingly nowhere and waved it inconspicuously, muttering a password under his breath.

There was an explosion from the Gryffindor table. Well, not quite an explosion, explosions were what happened in potions class as a result of an incompetent teacher, but a large…It was hard to describe. One minute the Gryffindors were shoveling food and chatting happily (somehow managing to do both at the same time, despite the fact that both required the use of one's mouth), the next there was a loud _BANG_ and a giant poof of pink and purple smoke complete with glittering silver confetti.

There was complete silence in the hall (evidently, everyone realized it was a prank, rather than a Death Eater attack, or there would have been pandemonium) as everyone watched with bated breath. The smoke cleared. And there was laughter.

The first Marauder visible (completely out of place amongst pink and purple smoke and sparkly silver confetti) was Sirius. Only he didn't look anything like Sirius any more. _She_ wore a black dress. Black lipstick was visible on pale lips. And plenty of silver jewelry, including piercings. Plus, as if that wasn't enough, there were at least five visible (and very large) tattoos of snakes. A very shocked looking (as well as female looking and Goth looking) Sirius stood frozen (not by spell) in the middle of the Great Hall. And it got better.

Seconds later, the smoke was a bit thinner and James was visible standing next to Sirius and looking even less like himself (or herself) than his friend. Blond hair fell down a little past waist length and she was wearing the most blinding, most pink dress than anyone in the Great Hall had ever seen before. There was so much jewelry on her that it was a wonder that she could even stand up straight; it surpassed even Trelawney on a bad day by far.

Remus was visible next, though she was a bit of a let down. Evan had decided to go easy on his friend and Severus (who was, truth be told, more than a little frightened of the werewolf) had reluctantly agreed. Her hair was cut shoulder length, in a semi-boyish style and was adorned with a baseball hat (turned backwards). A simple outfit of a plain shirt, jeans, and sneakers (though they were out of sight) completed the look.

If the audience were disappointed by the tomboy (for in fact a boyish girl wasn't horribly far from a regular boy), they were less disappointed when they saw Peter. Not a single article of clothing that the former boy was wearing matched. In fact the only thing they had in common was that they looked horrible together. Magenta, lime green, bright blue, and plenty of other painful colors were thrown carelessly together in patterns of stripes, polka dots, swirls, and even plaid in the worst ways imaginable. Severus was quite surprised that nobody threw up but none did, as far as he knew.

They took one look at each other and fled the hall, though not before they saw the most recent message in glowing green letters:

'Brought to you by Poison & Dagger

We hope you have a great day!'

They were heading towards The Room but it was very far from the Great Hall and when they were nearly there they were stopped by the sound of the bell ringing through the hallway. James and Sirius swore loudly (in slightly higher, more feminine voices than usual), wheeling around and leading the other two down to the Entrance Hall and out towards the greenhouses.

As they barreled out of the castle, they didn't notice the barrier stretched across the doorway and, not having the ability to see magic, they didn't see it set off a spell. In their rush they didn't notice that not a bird was singing anywhere in hearing range. Had they noticed, they undoubtedly wouldn't have thought anything about it. They ran on, oblivious to the hundreds of birds that lived in the forbidden forest and around the Hogwarts grounds rise up in a great mass of feathery, black wings; oblivious to the fact that Merlin knows how many birds had a single goal in mind: to make life as miserable as possible for the Marauders.

It was the loss of sunlight that first alerted one of the Marauders. She glanced upwards and gasped.

"Uh, guys? Or, uh…Girls?"

"This had better be important, Moony," Sirius panted, slowing to a stop.

"Look up," Remus said, her mind still trying to process what she was seeing. Peter squeaked. Sirius swore.

"What the…" James didn't get a chance to finish the sentence (which would have, undoubtedly, ended in much profanity). The birds attacked. They swooped down towards the Marauders and pecked at them furiously and, when Remus regained her head enough to cast a shielding spell, they used other means, particularly their…natural ammunition which, for some reason, managed to get through every shield that Remus managed to set up.

Remus, seeing that her companions looked about ready to Avada Kedavra the whole lot of birds, wisely chose to speak,

"Run! We can find cover in the greenhouses!"

They took off as fast as they could but the birds were faster. They were _everywhere_ the Marauders looked and more. Darting about and weaving between each other, dropping their droppings and pecking at them (the shield had gone down when they had started running). They ran to the greenhouses and ran into the one in which the sixth years took classes, slamming the door behind them.

"You're late," Professor Sprout commented, disapprovingly.

"We were a bit, uh, preoccupied," Remus, who (like the other marauders) was covered in bird droppings, said.

"We saw," was the Professor's only comment and the Marauders noticed with red cheeks that everyone in the greenhouse was near the windows where they must have been watching them, only moments before. "Because you have a…reasonable excuse, you're excused from the detentions that I would have given you. However, you would have been late even if you hadn't been preoccupied by this particular occurrence. Five points from Gryffindor. Each." Sirius groaned. "Would you like me to make it more, Ms. Black? Now, as I was saying, this week and next we will be studying the magical properties of various trees used in potions and wands. Can anyone tell me the magical properties of Yew? Yes, Mr. Harrison?"

"I can't _believe_ this!" Sirius hissed angrily, "It wasn't like it was _our_ fault!"

"Do you think there's more?" Peter asked worriedly, "The note said 'we hope you have a great day'...Do you think it means something?"

"And who's 'we'?" James asked, "I mean there's Harrison but who's the other guy?"

"I think it's Snape," Remus said, "They were pretty friendly yesterday…"

"Hiya Remus!" Evan said. He had somehow managed to make his way all the way across the classroom while the Marauders were talking, "Wow, you're a mess." The Marauders glowered at him.

Remus scowled,

"That wasn't very nice of you. What did you _do_ to those demon birds?"

"What makes you think I did anything," Evan asked innocently, "Those birds could have decided to attack you all on their own." He winced as Remus scowled harder. "You really are a mess. Okay, don't tell Severus I did this. _Scourgify!_ Well, that's a little better I suppose…At least we can see your wonderful outfit now." He had purposely _didn't_ put very much effort into the spell, though Remus didn't know that.

"Mr. Harrison!" Sprout had seen him chatting to the Marauders, "What is the significance of Yew in Muggle culture?"

Evan sighed,

"Yew trees are symbolic of death resurrection, as the wood is particularly resistant to rotting. They were once traditional features of Muggle churchyards. Yew has little significance in present day Muggle culture."

"Very good, Mr. Harrison, you were listening after all. Ten points to…" She paused, "Which house do you wish the points to go to?"

"Half and half?" Evan asked.

"Five points then to Gryffindor and Slytherin," the Professor said before continuing with her lecture.

"Professor Sprout doesn't like you much," Harry commented, noticing the venomous looks the normally mild tempered teacher shot the Marauders.

"A prank gone wrong in our third year set one of the greenhouses on fire," Remus explained, "She still blames us for the loss of her precious plants."

"Ah, okay. That would explain it," Evan said, "Anyways, I'd better go. Your friends are looking murderous. See you later, Remus! Have a great day!" He headed back across the classroom to where Lily was sitting while the Marauders glanced at each other, faces white.

Absolutely nothing happened in Transfiguration. The Marauders were so jumpy during the class, though, that none of them managed to successfully transfigure their matchboxes into anything resembling a chess set (even James, who was the best in the class at the subject). They did manage to clean themselves up a bit, though, with a few cleaning spells when McGonagall wasn't looking.

Finally the class was over and the Marauders headed to lunch. They were feeling a bit cockier since they hadn't been pranked yet, despite the fact that Evan had been in the room the whole time. Surely he would have pranked them he had any pranks ready…Right?

They stepped through the open doors leading to the Great Hall. That is, they tried to. As soon as they crossed the threshold they were thrown backward, landing on their rears several feet away. They sat there for a moment, stunned, before Sirius got to her feet and tried to enter the hall. As before, she was thrown backwards, though this time she was thrown into James.

"Hey!" James snapped, pushing her friend off of her.

"Sorry Prongs," Sirius said, staring at the doorway and trying to see an invisible barrier.

James was trying to stare at it too,

"Maybe if we push hard enough…" The two ran as fast as they could into the barrier and went flying all the way down the corridor. Unfortunately for the amusement of everyone watching, they didn't try it again. Instead they walked up to it, just in front of where they thought the barrier was (Peter ended up going a little too far and was pushed backwards a couple feet) and tried to figure out what to do.

"How are we supposed to get in there?" Sirius asked, watching the other students eat, "I'm starving!" Remus admitted to not knowing what sort of spell it was and they discussed their options. None really knew what to do and they finally decided to try one more run at the barrier to see if it would collapse (for lunch was nearly over and they were hungry).

They backed up to almost the end of the hallway and charged at the barrier that they couldn't see. The only problem was, Evan had released the barrier a while ago and they ran right through it. The Marauders realized too late their mistake and tried to slow down but they were leaning forwards too much and soon lost their balance. Sirius tripped first followed closely by James and Remus (who tripped over his two friends). Peter was the last to trip, not having put too much strength in his charge, and tripped over the other three, banging his head quite painfully in the process.

The rest of the day passed slowly and very painfully. Peter ate _something_ in lunch that made him temporarily fall in love with half of the Slytherin population (spending lunch sighing over various Slytherins and even asking Lucius if she could carry his books); they got into a lot of trouble with Flitwick when their books acted up in charms and he even _complemented_ 'whoever cast the charm' for their 'perfect charmwork' when he examined the books; when they finally managed to get some time in The Room they found that it had been decorated with Slytherin colors; and during dinner they unintentionally put on a play for the Wizard of Oz (staring James as Dorothy and Sirius as Toto).

The Marauders dragged themselves back up to the common room, almost too tired to talk. Almost.

"I'm going to _kill_ Harrison!" Sirius said angrily, "How in the world did he get so many pranks set up?"

"I have no idea," James said, "How long do you think we're going to stay girls?"

"Maybe it will be gone by tomorrow…" Peter said hopefully.

"Doubtful," Sirius said, "But at least you aren't covered with snake tattoos."

"It can't be nearly as bad as what I'm wearing," Peter argued. This was something she normally wouldn't do, but she was too exhausted to care.

"Unity conquers," Remus said, yawning, as they approached the common room, silently glad that she was a tomboy, rather than anything that her friend had ended up as. There was a hissing and Remus looked up. In the frame where the fat lady usually sat there was an enormous, black snake.

Peter gave a yell (he had always been afraid of snakes and even more so when he learned his Animagus form was a rat) and backed away from it, his panic overruling the logical part of his brain that knew that portraits couldn't harm anybody. The snake gave what Evan could have told the Marauders was an amused hiss, though it seemed downright menacing to the pranksters. To their very great relief, the portrait swung open without further complaint and the Marauders ran all the way up to their dormitory, slamming the door shut (there were a few yells from those who had been sleeping) and leaning against the closed door.

"What…the…hell…?" James panted. By the looks on the other's faces, they agreed.

Finally, Remus got up,

"We should get to bed, I'm exhausted."

They hurried to change into their bedclothes but found that the clothing ran away from them whenever they tried to put it on. It was quite a sight to see Sirius fighting with hers while rolling about on the floor while James tried to force her way into hers. Peter attempted to stun hers but it had regained consciousness when she had finished changing and was trying desperately to get off of its owner. Remus had given up but realized, upon starting to get into her bed, that the pillows had been animated too and scuttled away from her.

In the end, Remus had managed to un-animate everything (though their bedclothes changed colors and sometimes design to match the dressed they had been wearing, excluding Remus who hadn't been wearing a dress) and they climbed into bed, extremely tired. It was Peter who first noticed the hissing and something cold, scaly, and _moving_ touching his feet. With a yell he threw back his covers to reveal a writhing mass of snakes in his bed. The others scrambled out of their beds as fast as they could.

"Harrison's going to _pay_!" Sirius hissed, climbing back into bed some time later, after they had finally managed to get rid of all of the snakes, "Somehow, we'll make him pay for what he did to us today!"

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

I'm sorry guys for not updating sooner. Apart from myself I have only my crazy muses to blame. They insisted that I write Tainted Betrayal and have been quite insistent that I write a couple others too. They just won't listen to me when I tell them that the next book is coming out in a couple days and the stories will be messed up after that anyways…(sigh)

Anyways, there was a lot of stuff on how the Marauders work in the near beginning of the chapter and then after that…Well, lots of misery for them.

You like the pranks? The girl one was the unanimous vote (pretty much) though I added some to it. The Goth part felt a bit stereotypical, though it wasn't meant to be. I would have made it vague but I don't think my readers would appreciate me dropping details like that.

As ever, prank ideas are greatly appreciated (as are reviews), though I do have a large surplus of pranks to draw upon for a while...Well maybe not, I used an awful lot in this chapter. The problem is mostly that I can't find any pranks to be pulled on Severus and Harry and/or Slytherin house. Apart from the fact that a large majority of the pranks you guys gave me are for the Marauders or wouldn't be quite right on Severus and/or Harry.


	12. The Marauder's Attempted Revenge

I'm really, very, very sorry this took so long. I have plenty of excuses but I won't waste room with them. I'm not completely satisfied with this chapter, but I assumed that you'd rather I just put it up for you as soon as possible.

Because of the recently discovered rule about not replying to reviews I have, out of fear for my story, gone through every chapter and replacing the review responses with small sections at the beginning of chapters to reply to questions. For this chapter, though, there haven't been any questions that I haven't in some way or another answered before.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. I'd _like_ to own Harry Potter but it's not as if I _do_. Got it?

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twelve: The Marauder's (attempted) Revenge**

The Marauders did try; you had to give them credit for it. After that humiliating day they set loose every prank that they could think of. The problem was very few of the pranks actually ended succeeding on Poison and Dagger and a few of them even managing to backfire spectacularly. Pranked foods and objects remained untouched and when the Marauders tried to cast spells directly on Poison and Dagger random series of events always caused these spells to miss.

The spell that changed the Marauders into girls should have lasted a month or two but Harry released it after a couple days, saying it would have been weird to share a room with the female versions of the Marauders. Of course, once he did move into the Gryffindor common room he had cautiously prodded the door open with his foot, aware that he was deep in enemy territory. Harry was instantly rewarded as a hovering cauldron full of multi-colored ink tipped over; raining ink onto the floor where he would have been standing had he casually walked in. He had gone to sleep soon after that but not before heavily warding his bed and all of his belongings.

The weeks went by and Harry became used to switching between dorms all the time. The prank war continued but classes settled down, the students finally getting used to the prank war. The Gryffindors and Slytherins almost seemed to be resigned to their fate of being pranked at least once a day and the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws just seemed relieved that their houses were pretty much ignored. The pranks as well seemed to settle down into habit as both sides started to run out of new ideas, though neither side was willing to admit defeat.

"Pettegrew!" Harry said sharply, having cornered the rat animagus in the corridors near the Slytherin common room during a free hour, "What are you doing in the dungeons?"

"N-nothing," the Marauder said stuttering slightly, "I was j-just trying to find James."

"In the dungeons?" Harry asked skeptically, "I'd have thought he's more likely to be at the Quidditch pitch or up in Gryffindor tower."

"S-Sirius and Remus are looking there now." Peter looked nervous but that was perfectly natural. He was a Gryffindor in Slytherin territory, after all.

"Wouldn't Remus be a better choice to look in the dungeons? He's the least likely to get into trouble down here."

"I'm supposed to be looking in the Great Hall. A Ravenclaw said she saw James near the dungeons earlier."

Harry studied Peter carefully. The problem with this particular Marauder was that he was a very good liar and actor, more so than the other three, and could make up very believable stories when cornered by a teacher or, in this case, a rival prankster. Severus was a bit better at telling if Peter was lying but he had but he was working on some extra credit work in the library (he had messed up a potion earlier thanks to the Marauders and had asked the teacher if he could make up for the lost points; never mind that nobody else, save Harry, had actually managed to get the potion anything near the magenta it was supposed to be).

"I haven't seen him," Harry said, studying Peter's body language carefully. Though Salazar was very good at detecting deceit (he was the Head of Slytherin, after all), Peter was a good enough liar to discourage all but the vaguest suspicion without Salazar's ability to see auras, which had still not returned. Harry was even beginning to believe that it never would and had to continuously remind himself that it was just the magical imbalance and it would return when he got back to his own time. Well, Harry's time at least. "I'll be sure to tell him you're looking for him if I do. Now get out of my sight." Peter left at a run and Harry, almost as an afterthought, shot a pranking hex at the retreating Marauder. After making sure that Peter was heading out of the dungeons, Harry turned and continued towards the Slytherin common room.

"Slytherin Pride," he said as he finally neared the blank area of wall that concealed the common room. The door slid open and he grimaced at the glow of neon paint. The Marauders had, earlier that week, painted the whole Slytherin common room (including all the furniture and the much annoyed portraits) in bright splotches of pink, green, yellow, orange, and blue paint that glowed in the dark. Thankfully, the damage didn't extend into the dormitories, the rooms having been protected by the curses and jinxes of their paranoid Slytherin owners.

Harry flopped onto his bed, pulling a book out of his trunk and starting to read. There wasn't much else to do while his friend was in the library and he was starting to regret his decision not to come along.

Half an hour later the door banged open to admit a scowling Severus. Harry glanced up and raised an eyebrow. His roommate was wearing a lion suit of the type that young Muggle children wore for Halloween.

"Cute," Harry said dryly.

Severus glared at him,

"It is _not_ 'cute'!"

"You're right, it's not cute," Harry said, "It's adorable."

"Are you going to _help_?"

"Fine, fine…Tell me what happened," Harry said, grabbing his wand from the small table next to his bed and sitting up.

"I was coming back from the library, through my usual rout…You know, the secret passageway behind the statue of the crying lady near the usual entrance to the dungeons?" Severus paused, allowing Evan time to reply.

"Yeah, it was one of the first ones you showed me," Evan said, motioning for Severus to continue.

"So anyways, it happened about half way down the passageway, which would put it…I don't know…Pretty close to the Slytherin common room."

Harry frowned slightly, thinking,

"I caught Pettegrew sneaking around somewhere around there. You think this calls for a retaliation prank?" His expression and voice turned slightly dreamy, "Something big…and lots of mass chaos…"

"Evan!" Severus said sharply, for his friend was getting quite distracted, "_A little help?_"

"Hm…? Oh, right…" Evan seemed to snap out of his daze, "Uh…So, did you touch anything to set it off, or was it just passing through a certain part of the passageway?"

"I didn't tough anything…It must have been the passageway," Severus said, trying to remember.

"Okay," Evan muttered a spell and, with a sharp jab of his wand, a silver mist floated down around Severus. Even as he cast the spell he knew that something was wrong. The mist turned a pale pink and expanded until a giant, pink cloud had engulfed the room.

Evan swore loudly. He nearly switched to Parseltongue but remembered that there was another person in the room before it was too late.

"I take it that that wasn't supposed to happen?"

Harry sighed,

"Well, let's see what I've done now." He muttered a wind charm and the pink mist started to clear up. "_Accio Mirror!"_ A small mirror flew into his hand. Harry stared at his reflection; he was now wearing a matching costume, though his was a pink bunny suit while Severus's was a lion. Severus started to laugh.

"It's not funny," Harry pouted, which only caused his roommate to laugh harder.

"Sevvvvie," Harry whined.

Severus stopped laughing; making a sound that vaguely recalled an angry cat,

"Call me that one more time, Evan, and I _will_ kill you."

"Oh but Sev!"

Severus opened his mouth to argue against this new nickname but, eventually deciding it was a hell of a lot better than Sevvie, he wisely chose to keep his mouth shut.

"What'll we do to the marauders for this then?" Severus asked after a moment of silence.

Harry frowned in thought,

"Weeeeell, most of the pranks we thought of but haven't used yet are little things…How 'bout a performance of some type at dinner? And there are a few small pranks that I really wanted to try out…We could slip those in for the next couple of days."

"And you'll be switching dormitories again tonight so you'll probably have lots of opportunities."

"Yeah, I suppose," Harry muttered glumly, not looking forward to it at all.

"It's just one week and you'll be having classes with us now," Severus said trying to cheer his friend up, "And anyways we have pranks to plan. We have half an hour before the next class…Do you think there's time to set anything up?"

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"So, did you set it up?" Sirius asked excitedly as Peter entered the room out of breath.

"Yeah, I did…Harrison saw me though, so he might have suspected something."

"Let's hope your spellwork pays off, Remus. You've been working on that thing all week." James said.

Remus was more interested in something that he had spotted behind his friend,

"Uh, Peter…Turn around." Peter did so, looking confused. James and Sirius gasped as a large, fluffy tail came into view. It was a silvery-grey in color and seemed to bounce with every movement.

"Squirrel, I think," Sirius said, studying the tail carefully. No one bothered to contradict him, as he was probably right. He was the one who spent the most time chasing the things, after all. Peter, who was trying to look over his shoulder, spotted the tail and gave a squeal of surprise.

Twenty minutes later, Remus had thrown just about every spell that he could think of at the tail, and it still remained as big and squirrelly as ever. Finally, Remus pointed out that if they didn't leave soon they would be late to Transfiguration and the Slytherins would probably be delighted if this prank cost Gryffindor some points. He sure didn't want a detention, even if Sirius seemed to be trying to break some sort of record.

"Don't worry Peter," James said, trying to be reassuring, "McGonagall will probably know something that can help. Or we can go to the hospital wing after class and see what Pomfrey; she probably has loads of cases like this. Remember Fabian Prewett in our third year?"

Peter cheered up a bit after that and they headed down towards the transfiguration classroom. He hardly noticed the fluffy tail bouncing behind him with every step, though James and Sirius kept glancing back over their shoulders at it and many passersby stopped to stare.

When they began pulling out their books for transfiguration, however, Remus noticed something alarming,

"Okay, which one of you guys took the Marauder's Rulebook?"

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"What happened to you?" Lily asked, surprised, as Harry sat down next to her at the Gryffindor table for dinner, as had become his custom. She had not seen his new outfit before, as Harry had just been in Care of Magical Creatures, the only class that they didn't share when Harry was attending classes with his Gryffindor schedule.

"Prank," Harry said cheerfully, reaching for some food, "What else?" He had given up moping long ago and decided it was his punishment for being careless. Besides, the Marauders wanted him knocked down a peg or two so it was best to continue being cheerful.

"Well, you know how they got you, don't you?" Lily asked a little thrown off by his cheerfulness, "You should learn from your mistakes."

"Of course!" Harry said, "I've settled down into a pattern, so they can observe this and predict where I'll be and what I'll be doing at certain times of the day. Remus is probably the one who thought of that, he thinks the most strategically of the Marauders."

Lily blinked,

"Wow, you really know this pranking stuff."

"It's basic, really. You need to know how to make sure that the prank will probably reach the person or group of people you're targeting. I think you'd do pretty well yourself. So how about it, would you like to join our group of anti-Marauder pranksters?"

"No, I think I'll just watch," Lily said, smiling.

"That's too bad," Harry said, "though Sev would probably kill me if you accepted."

"Sev?" Lily asked. She distantly wondered why Remus had yet to arrive but before she could voice her thoughts there was a disturbance.

A loud, high pitched whistle filled the Great Hall, emanating from the Gryffindor table and, along with it, the lights dimmed considerably. There were a few brief exclamations from various people in the Hall before everyone quieted down to watch the show.

James was standing in front of the teacher's table, where a small, illuminated, stage stood giving everyone had a good view of him. And then he began to sing and enthusiastically, making gestures with his arms,

"I'm a little teapot short and stout,

Here is my handle and here is my spout,

When I get all steamed up here me shout,

Tip me over and pout me out!"

After his short but exuberant recital James gave a bow and backed up to the edge of the stage where he stood quietly, making room for the Peter, who clambered up over the edge of the stage, tail bobbing behind him.

There was no enthusiastic performance this time; only a nervous recital,

"Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,

A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.

If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,

How many pickled peppers did Peter Piper pick?"

After he had finished, Peter also backed away, allowing the remaining two Marauders to climb onto the stage. These two, however, were dressed up, Remus as a girl and Sirius as a black sheep.

Sirius went first, baaing out:

"Baa, baa black sheep,

Have you any wool?

Yes sir, yes sir,

Three bags full.

One for my master,

One for my dame,

But none for the little boy,

Who cries in the lane,

Baa, baa black sheep,

Have you any wool?

Yes sir, yes sir,

Three bags full."

Remus quickly followed,

"Mary had a little lamb,

Little lamb, little lamb,

Mary had a little lamb,

Its fleece was white as snow.

Everywhere that Mary went,

Mary went, Mary went,

Everywhere that Mary went,

The lamb was sure to go.

It followed her to school one day,

School one day, school one day,

It followed her to school one day,

Which was against the rules.

It made the children laugh and play,

Laugh and play, laugh and play,

It made the children laugh and play,

To see a lamb in school."

They bowed and left the stage, triggering the traditional note from Poison and Dagger.

"Hey, Remus!" Harry greeted his dazed friend cheerfully, standing up and pulling the werewolf into his usual seat.

"What did you do to him?" Lily asked, alarmed, as she waved her hand in front of Remus's face.

"Just a couple minor spells. Let's see…There was a Confundus charm to daze him and a couple others to make him sing and stuff. The Confundus was to make sure that those worked smoothly. After all, all the ones I know of that are legal are rather weak. And illegal…Well, I would hardly put an Imperius on him just for a prank."

"But you would otherwise use it?" Lily asked, watching him closely.

"I didn't say that!" Harry protested.

"You didn't say you wouldn't either," Lily said.

"The Imperius is _illegal_, Lily," Harry said patiently, "I'd be sent to Azkaban _for the rest of my life_ if I even tried it. And it seriously messes up people's heads; I wouldn't do that!" The Imperius, while strong, hadn't been one of Salazar's favorite spells. It was a spell that was actually more powerful when the caster was less delicate about the specifics and cared more about brute force. Salazar himself had preferred the more subtle ones that made it extremely difficult to tell the difference in the person who had been enchanted.

"Sorry, sorry," Lily said, "It was just the way you said it. It almost reminded me of Potter trying to convince a teacher that he didn't do some prank."

Harry blinked,

"You just compared me to Potter," _damn, I should be careful of that_, "I think I should be insulted."

"Well, you do look a lot alike," Remus added, shaking his head as if trying to clear it, "Almost exactly, except you're a little smaller, you don't wear glasses, and your eyes are green. And your sme…" he started to add offhandedly. His eyes widened and he stopped mid-sentence.

"Well, I should hope that there are large differences in personality, at least," Harry said, covering up the awkward gap in conversation. So there _was_ some truth in the rumor that werewolves had abnormally good senses.

"Don't worry," Remus said, laughing, "you act completely different." Though Harry knew that the werewolf wasn't being entirely truthful, he beamed at his friend. _So there to everyone who said that I was exactly like my dad_.

From somewhere behind them floated the lyrics to "I'm a little teapot". They turned around to see what was happening (though Harry already knew) and spotted James standing up on his seat and performing again.

"What did you do?" Lily asked Harry, spotting his smirk.

"Oh, just a little extra spell…" Harry said, his smirk growing, "There are certain words that set off the songs." He noticed Severus standing near the Gryffindor table and smirked. His friend would have a lot of fun tormenting the Marauders with this one.

"Hey, Black!" Severus called, "Sheep." The dog animagus turned into a black sheep once more and recited his song while Severus laughed. Once done, he shook his head to clear the spell and glared at the still-laughing Slytherin. Barely a second later he was a sheep again and Sev was moving on down the table to the next Marauder.

"Hey, Sev!" Harry called, waving his friend over. The two talked quietly for a couple minutes and then Evan turned back towards his Gryffindor friends. "Sev and I are going to the library. I'll see you tomorrow!"

They actually did head to the library, in the far back near the section on wizarding law that very few people actually knew existed (and even less actually cared). Though their shared room was their official 'meeting spot', for the week Evan was supposed to stay in the Gryffindor Common rooms and out of the Slytherin ones – unless he had an excuse. The library was an excellent place to stay because it wasn't suspicious and made a great excuse. It was so large and had so many little-known sections which, over time, different groups of students had claimed. Harry knew that the Marauders had their own little table near the dusty yearbooks a couple rows down and had made sure that there were appropriate gaps in the books so that they could keep an eye on the Marauders without the Animagi realizing it.

Harry sat down at his usual seat and started to unpack his bag, piling various schoolbooks around him and setting up a supply of fresh parchment in front of him. Frowning, he rummaged around in his bag for a few minutes before triumphantly pulling out a bottle of ink. He lifted his quill to his new parchment and paused,

"Did Professor Assero assign an essay on defensive charms or was it just magical shields?"

Severus looked at him, annoyed,

"You didn't drag me out here, halfway through dinner and in the middle of one of our pranks, just to do homework." When Evan continued to look expectantly at him he gave in, "It was defensive charms. There, happy? Now, what do you want?"

"Whatever do you mean?" Harry took his time writing his title and name on the paper until he decided that Severus looked suitably annoyed, "I just got something from Remus's bag earlier. You wouldn't believe how heavily warded the thing is. I think Lily would make a great prankster. Anyways, I'd been trying all week and I finally managed to get my hands on it this morning. What do you say we ask her to join out little pranking team?"

Severus blinked for a minute, trying to decode Evan's sentences, "What is it?" The last couple of sentences finally managed to process themselves through his brain, "Absolutely not!"

"Aw, Sev, you're no fun," Harry pouted, "Whatever, it's not like I wasn't expecting it. Anyways, I got this." He held up an ancient looking book. Severus thought it was rater anticlimactic. The book was old, yes, and so frail that it looked like it would fall apart at any given moment, but it was rather plain; small and brownish with faded gold letters on the cover.

"What is it?" he asked blankly, squinting as he tried to make out the small letters on the cover. This was made rather difficult by the fact that his friend was waving it around in the air enthusiastically. "Will you hold still?" Severus snapped. Surprisingly, the teen did so and Severus finally managed to read the title. "The Marauder's Rulebook? Isn't that that silly little book that lets the Marauders get away with everything? What use is it to us?"

"It's much more than a rulebook," Harry said, setting it down and opening it.

Severus leaned over to look and than looked up at Evan, confused,

"It's blank."

"Try writing something in it," Harry suggested. At Severus's disbelieving look he added, "Go on; try it!"

Severus gave Harry another incredulous look, turned the book around so that if faced him, took the quill Evan gave him, tapped it absentmindedly against the parchment while trying to think of something appropriate to say, and then gave up on that altogether and wrote '_This is stupid_' in large letters on top of the page.

_What's stupid?_ Scarlet ink blossomed on the page. Severus dropped the book in shock.

_Well obviously _you_ are, stupid Gryffindor,_ Green ink answered.

_I wasn't asking _you_, Silverfang_, the red ink wrote back, simple ink on paper suddenly able to convey the writer's annoyance.

_Honestly, you two, we can't even leave you alone for a minute before you're at each other's throats again_, Black ink interjected.

"What is _that_?" Severus asked, staring at the book as if it was a poisonous snake.

"It's a book," Evan replied patiently, evidently enjoying his friend's panic.

"I know it's a book!" Severus said, "But what _is_ it?"

"I'm afraid you're not making much sense," Evan said, though the amused glint in his eyes said otherwise, "Do you need to lie down?" Severus shot him an angry glare and he finally gave up his teasing, "It's the Marauder's Rulebook which, as you know, was written by the original Marauder's of Hogwarts: Silverfang, Goldenclaw, Talon, and Stripe. Rather than leaving a long and boring book full of silly rules, they decided to leave Imprints of themselves behind in the book."

Severus's alarmed look transferred to Evan as he looked up in surprise. Imprints were generally risky and many people were against them. They had been classified as Dark Magic a couple hundred years ago because of this. People had been alarmed at what could happen to whatever other pieces of their souls they had if they were just allowed to float around out there. They failed to see that it was almost exactly the same thing that happened when they went out and spent a couple hundred Galleons to have their portraits painted.

Evan reached over and picked up the book,

"Come on, it's not going to bite." He dug another quill out of his bag along with a couple more bottles of differently colored inks, "Here, choose a color. It'll make it easier to tell who's who." He himself grabbed silver while Severus pondered over the choices, eventually choosing a pale green.

_Hello_, Evan had begun to write, _I'm Dagger._ "Come on," he said to Severus, "Write something."

_I'm Poison_, Severus wrote awkwardly. He glared sourly at the book, "Why'd you get this thing, anyways?"

Evan shrugged,

"I felt like it."

"You felt like it? Books can be dangerous, Evan! You just picked up this thing because you felt like saying hi to some ancient pranksters?"

"What a thing to say in a library. Now shush or Madam Pince will hear you."

_Poison's right, you know,_ Blue ink added, _but this particular book is perfectly harmless._

Evan's eyes widened,

"You can hear us?"

_Moony added that new feature with the translating charms_, the black ink, Stripe, informed him. _Anyways, Dagger knew all along that we were harmless, didn't you, Silverfang?_

It took a few moments for this statement to sink into the two Slytherins sitting across from each other at a small table in the Hogwarts library.

"What?" Severus asked, laughing, "You think Evan – Dagger, I mean – is Silverfang?"

_Yes, that's what I said_, Stripe told them conversationally.

"That's ridiculous!" Severus protested, "You four must have lived at least a couple hundred years ago!" He faltered, realizing just how much he didn't know about his friend, "It's not true, is it Evan?"

"Of course it's not!"

_Oh, quit your acting, Sal!_ Talon snapped, _We lived with you for nearly half your life before we created these Impressions. We know your handwriting, we know your style, and we know you're aura. I'm sure you remember that Impressions, being made of magic, are essentially blind except for their ability to see magic and auras. _

"I'm telling you I don't know what you're talking about!" Harry snapped. How could he have overlooked that? He had automatically assumed that his aura had been changed enough beyond recognition, especially with all the changes he had made to avoid detection. "I'm sure if I ever knew anyone named or nicknamed Talon, Stripe, and Goldenclaw I'd remember! Especially if I _had_ spent half my life with them."

_And Moony told us about the message from Silverfang_, Goldenclaw said, _We were puzzled at first because we couldn't remember ever setting or hearing about ourselves setting anything fitting the description._

_This is ridiculous!_ Silverfang's writing had a peculiar sharpness to it that told everybody that he was extremely angry, _I, at least, can say that he's not me!_ Harry was relieved and extremely grateful for his Impression's statement. He was probably the one most convinced that Dagger was really Silverfang.

_Like we can trust that!_ Goldenclaw snapped right back, _You would support yourself, wouldn't you! Rather than your friends!_

_The pure ridiculousness in that statement is not worth even commenting on_, Silverfang said, a haughty air to his words.

"Look," Severus said nervously. There was a certain deadly feeling in the air that centered around his friend who, by now, was glaring at the book furiously, "I don't care who's who. It's not worth arguing…" he trailed off. The book had gone blank. He blinked at it, "What happened?"

"The Marauders have copies linked to the original book. I put a copy to cut off communication in case the Marauders tried looking at those. They won't be able to speak of out conversation. Of course, I'd hoped the topic would have been more like upcoming pranks," Evan said, standing up stiffly with a grim air about him. Though the air no longer crackled with power, Severus could tell that his friend was still mad, "I should throw this thing into the fire!"

"I don't know why you're so offended," Severus commented. As soon as he said it he wished he hadn't but it actually made his friend pause and think.

"I'm sorry, Sev, I didn't mean to get all upset," Evan apologized, "It just annoys me when people mistake me for somebody I'm not." Which was true; especially with all the Boy-Who-Lived nonsense. Truth or not, however, he knew that it wasn't the best excuse and his friend didn't look completely convinced.

They worked on a couple assignments for a while but Evan couldn't concentrate very well. He had completely destroyed three quills so far by pressing to hard and an uncountable number of essays (by performing an editing spell to vigorously or accidentally tearing holes in the paper with his quill). Eventually he gave up and was just about to leave and go to bed, though he didn't think he would be able to sleep, when he noticed Severus with a rather pained expression on his face.

"What's wrong?" But he knew what was wrong. Even without his ability to read auras he could easily feel the twisted darkness that emanated from his friend's arm once he actually paid attention, "Why didn't you say something before?" He grabbed his friend's arm and, heedless to his friend's protests yanked back the sleeve covering the Dark Mark. The mark was there, as Harry had suspected it would be, but seeing it seemed to confirm the fact. The skin around the mark was an angry red and it seemed that it had been burning for at least a few minutes.

"Of all the stupid, idiotic, Gryffindorish things to do," Harry muttered. Severus tried to pull his arm away but Harry just held onto it harder, "Hold still for a minute!" He put his free hand over the mark and the pain that had been burning in his arm for the last ten minutes seemed to lighten up slightly. "It's the best I can do at such short notice," Evan was looking at him apologetically.

"Now," his voice took on a businesslike tone. Severus was still speechless, from shock or pain Harry wasn't sure. "Where do you keep your robes?" Severus continued to stare speechless for a minute before trying to pull away again.

"They're in my – our – room." He finally managed to say through teeth clenched against the pain.

Evan shook his head,

"Poor, silly little snake. You should have told me sooner. Any excuse would have done. Okay, let's go."

"What?"

"To the room, silly snake; to get your cloak and send you on your way. How do you usually leave the castle?"

"You're not…" Severus didn't know how to finish the sentence. Mad? Disappointed? Going to send me to the Headmaster? "I…the mark's a Portkey."

"Let's go then," Evan said, dragging him to his feet.

"You can't! You won't be let in; you're a Gryffindor this week!" But Evan didn't seem to be listening to him. The 'Gryffindor' had his hand on the stone wall nearest them.

It happened so quickly that Severus didn't know what happened. One minute he was standing in the library, leaning on his friend, the next suspended, seemingly in midair, while all around him swirling, roaring colors seemed to take over his senses. There was a powerful jolt and when Severus next looked around, gasping for breath, he was back in his dormitories.

It took several minutes for him to snap out of his dazed state and noticed that he fully dressed in his Death Eater garb. He vaguely recalled Evan helping him put them on over his regular cloths and was now stuffing his wand into his hand.

"Go!" Evan hissed. He looked a bit pale himself, Severus noticed through the cobwebs that still stuck to his mind. "He's really angry. If you don't go soon he might kill you!" Voldemort wasn't usually made wait by his Death Eaters still in school. Usually the lot were jumpier than a phoenix at burning day and he expected them to do exactly as they were told. Harry could feel all this and more through his bond with the insane Dark Lord, which had suddenly decided to make itself known. He supposed it had something to do with muffling Severus's Dark Mark.

Severus himself was pale and rather wide eyed. Without another word he disappeared. Harry slumped against the wall, breathing rather hard. Getting through the wards that he himself had put up had been rather hard, especially since the other founders had since reinforced said wards. He had had Hogwarts' help on that one, however. Muffling the Dark Mark was no easy task either. Add that to an already stressful evening and Harry thought he had good reason to collapse.

_Silly little snake for not telling me in the first place_, Harry thought, drifting off into near-sleep. Suddenly he thought about what he had just said and started sniggering at himself. He had slipped into his usual attitude for addressing young Slytherins without even realizing it himself. If Severus ever managed to pull himself out of his daze he would no doubt be indignant at the nickname.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Whoa…Sev's been making a lot of odd noises lately… "Severus made an angry noise somewhere between a huff and a growl but otherwise remained silent…" and "Severus stopped laughing; making a sound that vaguely recalled an angry cat…" Weird…(glares accusing at muses).

I was going to end it somewhere else but I decided this was a good place. I've got presents to wrap anyways.

Merry Christmas, Happy New Years, and Happy Holidays!

Reviews Much appreciated (especially 'em long ones…They're awesome!)

Prank ideas Very helpful


	13. A Slytherin Disaster

It has been brought up by a variety of different people (including my muses before any one of you) that not only is the time travel and pranking unnecessary, but it's dragging down the plot. I _do_ know this and I _have_ realized this and I'm trying to bring a little more balance to the plot. I apologize to all of you. I won't, however, get rid of either, though I will try and tone it down. My muses are sheepish but adamant that they stay.

_When Remus smelt Harry/Sal/Evan did he smell the mixed smell of Lily and James or __something else? _

_In this story, identification between magical animals (and sorry but that does mean werewolves, no offense intended at the phrasing) is partially magical signature (and Harry's changed a lot after he got his memories of Sal) and partially, yes somewhat of a cross between Lily and James. But because it's mostly magical signature, it's not recognizable at all that he's related to either of them. _

Disclaimer: Anyone who thinks I own anything is sadly mistaken. And that includes everything Harry Potter except for my battered copies of the books.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Thirteen:** **A Slytherin Disaster**

Harry finally stumbled back to the Gryffindor dormitory that night a little after curfew. Sneaking out of the Slytherin common room had been rather easy, thankfully (he had built the place, after all, along with a nice set of passageways that connected it to other parts of the castle); he hadn't had the strength to apparate back through the wards but. He was surprised that he had managed to make the first trip without splinching himself with the state he had been in. When he finally made it to the dormitories, however, he was unpleasantly surprised to find the Marauders waiting for him.

"You didn't have to stay up waiting for me," Harry said, though he didn't quite manage that extra little cheer that he usually put into his voice.

"Where have you been?" Sirius snapped, "It's after curfew!"

"Since when has that ever stopped _you_?" Harry muttered, but not loudly enough for the Marauders, save perhaps Remus, to hear him. "I had to go down to the Slytherin dorms to get something. Now look, I'm very tired so can you at least wait until tomorrow to ambush me?"

"Then we'll make this short if you cooperate," James said.

"Prongs…" Remus said, "Maybe you should let him rest, he looks exhausted. This isn't so important that it can't wait until tomorrow."

"I'm not going to wait a whole day just because that Slytherins _says_ he's tired!" James said, annoyed. "Now, Slytherin…We're bored of your little prank war. It's been almost two months." The Gryffindor went on to say that either Poison and Dagger admit defeat now or they would have some sort of decisive contest. He then outlined his plans for different types of contests.

Harry wasn't even listening. He only heard enough to understand the general concept of the discussion and then decided the best way to make it through the night was to nod and look like he was listening and then ask Remus what he had agreed to later. He really didn't care; he was tired and annoyed and just wanted to get to bed.

Maybe he would do something unpleasant to the Marauders in the morning. He thought for a minute. What did he think was unpleasant? A vague memory drifted around his mind for a minute before he acknowledged it.

When Harry was small and living with the Dursleys, he was often forced to do various chores, one of which was cleaning the dishes. Because he was small and couldn't hold large pots and pans well enough that they never spilled, the floor was often covered with puddles (that he had later had to mop up). During the winter, when it was cold, he often wore socks, as they kept them warm, despite their largeness, dirtiness, and overall unpleasantness. When these socks got wet, however, they clung to his feet in a peculiar way that more or less never failed to annoy him.

It was random, but random was good. Now the problem was: how could he duplicate such an effect with the Marauders? Hmm…Maybe he could put something in their shoes…But what? Water would leak out but wet shoes were never pleasant…He thought for a minute. Honey, he decided, was always a good pranking tool. He therefore resolved to get some honey from the kitchens the next morning and put it in the Marauder's shoes (and maybe even all over their robes) before they woke up. Yes, that would do nicely.

No longer annoyed but more tired than ever, he decided to cut James off so that he could go to bed,

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. I'll think about it. Now let me sleep in peace!" He changed and went to bed, too tired to care that the Marauders had covered his pajamas with little, hopping, pink rabbits and bright orange carrots.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Severus used the Dark Mark/Portkey to return to his room later that night. Too exhausted to stagger into his bed cloths, he merely hid his Death Eater robe and mask before collapsing into bed, shaking all over. As Evan had predicted, the Dark Lord had _not_ been happy and that meant a round of Cruciatus for all his followers, though Severus had been the one most heavily targeted.

He saw a gently flashing light out of the corner of his eye and turned his head to look. Sitting on his bedside table was two vials, clearly marked as a dreamless sleep potion and another one to help fight the (physical) aftereffects of the Cruciatus. The light had been a small charm used to attract people's attentions. He looked at the potions, puzzled, for a moment before realizing that Evan must have left them.

The Slytherin was too tired to be suspicious so instead chose to be grateful. He quickly drank the one that helped with the Cruciatus and sat still for a moment, feeling his shaking subsiding. Evan…He didn't know what to think of him; the boy was an enigma. Severus was sure that nobody else he knew would hesitate in turning him over to Dumbledore (even other Death Eaters). And then there was what the Marauder's Rulebook had said. Was Evan really Silverfang? The idea seemed preposterous but if it was untrue, why had Evan become so angry? And how had he managed to Apparate through Hogwarts' wards, something Severus knew was supposed to be impossible?

He blinked blearily; what with the Death Eater meeting and everything that had happened that day he was surprised he could still think strait. Indeed, thinking was a task that seemed as hard as swimming through molasses and thought process was slow and often off track.

It was too late to be thinking…Thankfully the next day was a Saturday and so he didn't have to worry about sleeping through class.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The next passed without incident, as if nothing had ever happened. Severus spent it waiting for Aurors to burst into Hogwarts and drag him off to Azkaban or, at the very least, Evan to confront him about it. He expected to counter accusation with accusation; why had he gotten so mad at the book? But Evan never said anything about it, and it became too late to ask about the book. Severus contented himself with what little he knew about Evan, determined not to pry.

And then, just one week later, something happened that sent the whole of Hogwarts alight with gossip.

Harry and Remus walked down across the grounds to Hagrid's hut. Though he wasn't the Care of Magical Creatures in this time, he often volunteered to help or show the class some random animal that he had temporarily obtained, so the area around Hagrid's hut was deemed the most convenient place to hold the class.

Harry said his goodbyes to Remus and then darted across the traditional gap that often occurred in Slytherin-Gryffindor classes...Or any other multi-house class.

They talked quietly together about their days so far and then quieted as the Professor Kettleburn cleared his throat to get their attention,

"Today, class, Hagrid has brought in quite a remarkable specimen of _Ophidia Argenteus_. Does anyone know what this is?" The students glanced at each other, obviously puzzled. The Professor seemed a bit put off by this but satisfied himself by asking, "Mr. Lupin, do you know what type of creature this is?"

Remus looked startled by being thrust so suddenly into the spotlight,

"Uh...No, Professor Kettleburn."

Professor Kettleburn looked even more disappointed,

"Er...How about Mr. Harrison. Do you know what an _Ophidia Argenteus_ is?" To tell or not to tell? Salazar could almost pity the teacher; he had seemed so enthusiastic about this new creature. He had certainly been in this situation before, surrounded by ignorant students but, unlike Kettleburn, he hadn't expected much of his students.

Finally giving up (there wasn't that much use trying to hide his knowledge here, after all) he said,

"The _Ophidia Argenteus _is a rather magnificent species of snake...Lets see...Full grown, they usually get ten to twelve feet long but some have been known to reach eighteen feet. Their scales are an iridescent silver and magically powerful, though not nearly enough as dragons. Enough to block basic spells, impedimenta, stupefy, and the like."

Professor Kettleburn beamed at him,

"Exactly right, couldn't have put it better myself. Ten points to Slytherin-Gryffindor." The teachers had started to just call it that after realizing that the castle was perfectly capable of splitting the points evenly. They just had to make sure to keep the number even. Of course, in a Slytherin-Gryffindor class like this, getting points did nothing more than get both sides annoyed. The Slytherins sneered at him, while the Gryffindors hissed things like 'snake-lover and 'know-it-all' behind the teacher's back.

Professor Kettleburn waved Hagrid over, the half-giant carrying a large box.

"Please be careful not to startle her, or even say something offending to her. Snakes are rather intelligent creatures, and proud, too," the Professor cautioned, "_Ophidia Argenteus _are _extremely_ venomous, so don't get too close, either. This one's rather young, so her venom isn't quite lethal - in small amounts and with adequate treatment. I trust that, as sixth years, you are mature enough to handle dangerous animals and show them proper respect." And he opened the lid. Some of the closer students scrabbled away from the now-open box.

Harry approached it cautiously (snake's didn't like being boxed up and just because he was a Parselmouth didn't mean he never got bitten), the rest of the class following at a safe distance. As he drew nearer, he thought he could see a flash of silver and then, suddenly, a serpentine head looked out from the box. Harry halted, not wanting to startle the snake and the rest of the class mimicked him.

The snake slithered out of the box in a liquid motion and some of the bolder and more curious members of the class walked towards it slowly, forming a sort of semicircle around the snake, who seemed to be enjoying the attention.

"She's beautiful," Harry breathed, partly because it was the truth and partly because it might appease her annoyance at being locked in a box for a while. His exclamation was followed by other admirations of the same sort and the rest of the class came up to look. The Marauders had crept around to the edge of the ring and were now poking at the snake with a long stick. Uh-oh...Trouble.

"'Magnificent' are you? Looks more like hideous to me!" Sirius taunted from a safe distance. Harry groaned...Someone save him from these idiotic Gryffindors. Didn't he see that this snake could _kill_ him, easily, effortlessly, and probably without consequences?

"Gaudier than multi-colored fairy-lights!" James jeered.

"Intelligent?" Peter added, never one to miss out on the taunting of another; human or creature, "I bet rats are more intelligent." Harry would have banged his head against something, had he had a convenient wall or table around. As it was, there was nothing but grass...with trees and Hagrid's hut, but those were farther off. Damn. Well, with no way to knock himself out, he would have to stay awake and deal with whatever disaster that was bound to occur.

The snake, predictably, was furious at being compared to its prey,

-Filthy human! _You_ are the rat, for all you smell like one. I bet you taste like one too.- Harry, who had already been jogging over to the disturbance, stopped so suddenly he nearly tripped. It couldn't be...His mind was blank, he couldn't think. The snake was raising itself to strike.

Shocked and without thinking he hissed,

-Serphenia?-

The snake turned,

-Sal?- his surprise was mirrored in her voice.

_Dammit!_ Harry hissed in his mind. That was twice he had given himself away, spoken Parseltongue without realizing it in an already precarious situation. And look what had happened last time around.

The snake - was it Serphenia?...Could it be? - was slithering towards him.

-Sal? But you're dead!-

-You are also dead, if you are who I think you are.- Harry hissed, backing up, not ready to believe.

-I'm Serphenia! I'm the little basilisk you raised in your Secret Chamber!- Something - desperation? - filled her voice.

-Prove it!- Harry hissed. This wasn't right. He had killed her...he had killed her himself with Gryffindor's sword...Oh, Ser...But snakes had distinct signatures - partially magical, partially voice - that they used to distinguish each other. You had to really be _trying_ to forge one.

"Evan?" A strangled whisper made him look up. It was Remus who had spoken, everyone else was just looking at him. He looked at Severus quickly but his friend was just staring at him like the others, wide-eyed.

-Leave. Meet me in the Chamber. If you really are her you will at least be able to find your way in.- And he fled. He brushed passed Remus, who tried to grab his arm, but he dodged away. He thought someone called his name but ignored it and kept running. He distantly considered the Forbidden Forest entrance but was not in any state to meet any of the various creatures lurking within. So he ran back to the castle, past a group of startled first years and plunged into the dungeons.

He felt trapped there, unable to feel the freedom that he wanted. His wings begged to be freed, the want to fly unbearable. But if he tried to fly in the dungeons, he would crash, and he held onto this piece of logic frantically, finding the freedom he so desperately craved in his dungeons, in the tunnels and passageways that only he knew so well.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The class watched Evan disappear up towards the castle, unsure what they should do. Then Remus broke away from the group.

"Evan!" He shouted, but his friend ignored him. He ran towards the castle, where his friend had disappeared; werewolf abilities giving him speed.

"Mr. Lupin!" Professor Kettleburn called, but the Gryffindor ignored him.

"Remus!" the Marauders left, chasing after their friend, though they could achieve nowhere near the same speed without transforming into their animagus forms in the middle of the class.

"Potter! Black! Pettigrew!" the Professor shouted, realizing that he was loosing control of his class rather quickly and that there was nothing he could do to bring them back. "Gather in a group right here. If anyone else tries to leave this class, a month's worth of detentions for all of you and fifty points from his or her House!"

They hurried to do so and, in the chaos, Severus managed to slip silently into the forbidden forest. Remus was after Evan and he could be of no use to the werewolf, not would be able to get to Evan before him, even with his extraordinary knowledge of the dungeons. He needed time to think, to gather his thoughts.

Severus's head snapped around as he saw a glint of silver at the corner of his eye. There was one other that was involved with this and he would not let her get away; she could lead him to Evan.

He approached the tree where he had seen the shimmer of the snake's scales moments before. A small, black bird flew out of the tree at Severus's approach but apart from that, all was still. He walked around the tree...But there was no snake waiting for him there, nor was there any sign of one. It had simply vanished into thin air. He gave a puzzled frown and looked around for a minute but he didn't find anything.

Maybe if he hurried, he would be able to get back before the teacher noticed his disappearance and save himself from his Housemates' wrath. There was no way he'd be able to get to Evan now, what with the other Slytherin's amazing knowledge of the dungeons and secret corridors. Even Remus, with his werewolf senses, would have a hard time getting to him without proper passwords; the Marauders rarely explored the dungeons.

Severus made a quiet sound of annoyance. He would have to wait for Evan to come to classes of their room, there was no way to make the Slytherin-Gryffindor come to him.

What had been the most disturbing, Severus reflected, taking his place among the other students, who glared at him for putting them at risk, was that he could understand everything that both Evan and the snake had said.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Remus was thoroughly lost. He thought he still had the trail, though his nose wasn't as powerful as a normal wolf's (well of course, he was currently a human!) but he had no idea where he was. Worse, he wasn't sure if he even had the right trail, as it seemed as if Evan visited this place quite often. In some odd way he felt that the castle itself was helping him, opening normally locked doors, for he never had problems like that but maybe it was because he wasn't following the trail right.

Suddenly the torches all went out. When he turned around they went back on, adding to his belief that Hogwarts herself was trying to help him find Evan. Feeling quite foolish, he crouched to the ground once again, bringing his nose close to the stone floor. Aha! The trail led into a wall. He brought his hand up to it, trying to find some switch or button to activate it (standard procedure before trying to guess passwords) but was surprised to see his hand go right through it. An illusion!

He went though it, moving as quickly as possible. Evan seemed to know these passageways well and would probably not even hesitate at doorways as Remus was forced to do. There! A flash of black on black! The quiet sound of cloth on stone! Even the air seemed freshly disturbed...He was close!

He ran after his friend and, a quite a number of minutes later, minutes of getting tantalizingly close before being stopped by a door, closer each time, he was able to catch his friend by the arm. Remus quickly reached out and grabbed the other hand, worried that his friend might go for his wand or try and hit him. Evan winced slightly and Remus had to remember that it was close to the full moon and his strength was stronger than usual.

"Evan!" The boy squirmed away from him and pulled, emerald eyes dark with a feral light, the air crackling with magic. Remus' hair stood on end and he knew instinctively that, had Evan not had any qualms about harming him, he would be blasted down the hall faster than he could blink. As it was, the magic burned at his hands and, seeing that Remus wasn't going to let go, Evan tried the muggle way: he bit him. Rather unnecessarily hard, Remus thought, trying to ignore the pain in his arm.

Angry and worried that his friend would get away, he pinned his friend against the wall. Never let it be said that werewolves aren't aggressive when need be.

"Evan, listen to me!" Remus said, "Just hear me out, okay?" His friend went still but Remus had the impression that it was more a survival instinct than rational thought. Now that he had Evan's attention, or part of it, he didn't know what to say. "I..." There was a flash of silver and a terrible burning on his arm. His friend wriggled out of his grasp, holding a silver dagger wearily in front of him.

_Dammit!_ He had let one of Evan's arms to hold him to the wall, convinced that his other could hold the other two still, at least reasonably. Apparently, he had been very wrong.

Evan hissed something in Parseltongue and suddenly there was a door in the wall. _Of course!_ Remus realized, _Salazar Slytherin built these dungeons. There are probably all sorts of Parseltongue passwords to things!_ Remus tried to approach his friend, wary of the dagger (_How did he know?)._ Evan slipped into the new passageway and out of sight, the doorway closing behind him.

_Damn!_ Remus slid to the floor, clutching his arm where the silver had burnt it. Thankfully, Evan hadn't cut him with the dagger but instead pressed the handle into his arm, but this proved that Evan _had_ known and it hadn't been a coincidence, that pulling out the dagger hadn't been some lucky act of self-defense. But it was very close the full moon and the burn from the silver hurt terribly.

"Remus!" James skidded to a stop just a couple inches from where Remus was lying on the floor. The large black dog that had been leading James whimpered and licked his face. Peter watched silently from the background.

"Padfoot!" Remus groaned, wiping his face on his sleeve, "I'm fine. Just stings a bit, that's all. Didn't expect him to have any silver on him."

"He knew?" James asked and then, "He used silver on you? That-" He started calling Evan various not-so-polite names until Remus cut him off.

"It was my fault, James. I shouldn't have grabbed him in his state..."

"Oh stop taking all the blame!" Sirius snapped, now human. "He's a Slytherin, a _Parselmouth! _How can you still defend him?"

"And I'm a werewolf!" Remus snapped, suddenly angry, "Does that make me any less human?"

"But you're a Gryffindor!" Sirius protested.

"So is he! He was sorted into Gryffindor like all of us!"

Sirius gave an incredulous snort of laughter,

"Except for the itty-bitty fact that he was SORTED INTO SLYTHERIN, TOO!"

"An absolutely insignificant fact!" Remus snapped.

"It is not insignificant! And he's a Parselmouth! Everyone knows they're all Dark!"

"And everyone knows that werewolves are Dark creatures!" Remus staggered to his feet, "I could go as far and say that _you're_ the one with the Dark family!" Sirius froze and they stood there, glaring at each other, absolutely still, thought Remus was swaying a little. James was ready to interrupt; Remus had broken the unspoken rule about not mentioning Sirius's family. But Remus straitened up and stormed past the other Marauders.

"Hey, wait!" James said, glancing from one friend to another, "Hey, Remus, come back!"

"Let him go!" Sirius snapped, "If he wants to play around with Slytherins that's his decision!"

Peter watched this all with an unreadable expression, watched for the second time as the Marauders pulled themselves apart over just one person.

Someone else was watching from the shadows, emerald eyes dark, unsure. And then the shadows stirred and he was gone from sight.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Remus is getting rather touchy with the rest of the Marauders…Oh well…

This is a quick update; I'm not going to have internet for a while, so I needed to get this up right away. If I find any problems, they'll be corrected tomorrow.


	14. Lord Voldemort's Trap

_So Severus is a Parselmouth? Then why didn't the snakes at the Manor understand him? Or does he?_

_Yes to the first question and as for the second…It'll be explained. Later._

_Is Serphenia the basilisk? Then why does Sal not believe she is alive, when she is killed twenty years later?_

_Serphenia is the basilisk, Ser for short. A small miscalculation on my part that actually fits into the story. So maybe I didn't forget, I just forgot that I didn't forget. Maybe I actually sort of knew that when I wrote it._

Disclaimer: I don't own anything! (burst into tears)

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Fourteen: Lord Voldemort's Trap**

Harry glided through the passageways, quiet and intangible as one of the faded ghosts that haunted the long-forgotten towers and passageways of Hogwarts. There. The entrance to the Chamber. But he had forgotten one thing. He did not know what made him assume that the snake he saw was of Harry's time. He didn't know why it reminded him so much of Serphenia, despite the completely different appearance; even magical signatures weren't completely unique. However, assuming that this snake wasn't the basilisk of this time, he had a large basilisk of questionable mental stability that he couldn't contact, lest he say something that would cause a paradox.

Though he could try and be quiet, the basilisk (it was easier to refer to her as that while she was under Tom Riddle's control) would undoubtedly know when someone entered their Chamber; he had built it that way. Even if she was asleep, a conversation is Parseltongue would wake her up. So what could he do? He couldn't enter the chamber but he had said he would meet the snake in the Chamber; a challenging test though not a well thought-out one.

Then, rolling his eyes at his own stupidity, he took out his wand, casting a strong sleeping spell on the whole chamber. Even if the basilisk was out and about in the pipes at the far end of the castle (he didn't know how she had managed to get in there, they were meant only as a means for him to get down and a reason for the empty space in an area that was only questionable Slytherin territory) he was confident that the spell would be able to get to her before she noticed him without touching any of the students.

-Open,- he hissed and a section of the stone wall, no different from the other hundreds that lined the dungeons besides a tiny snake etched into the stone wall, disappeared. He winced at the cold air that escaped the Chamber; all heating charms had failed many years ago. The Chamber was not meant to hold a fully-grown basilisk, let alone for so long.

He entered cautiously, he didn't know for sure that the basilisk was fully asleep (if at all) and Slytherins didn't get anywhere by being careless. There was nothing good that came of being overcautious and most Slytherins were overly paranoid by nature. If not, they soon learned the hard way.

But there was no need to worry; the basilisk lay asleep at the end of the chamber. The other snake was much harder to find; he was almost ready to give up and go back to the dorms when he spotted it, pitch black and lying in the shadow of one of the large snake statues. He frowned, picking it up cautiously. For some reason that Harry could not fully explain, he felt that this was the same snake, though as far as he knew no _Ophidia Argenteus _had any appearance-changing abilities.

Now, what to do with her? The Chamber was made unsafe by the basilisk and in other places he was likely to be found by the Marauders or Severus. Again, the answer came to him, so glaringly obvious. Salazar's quarters! He was sure that nobody would be able to find him there, with all his passwords and wards.

He touched the walls and hissed a password,

-Open; Personal Chambers.- A doorway opened in the wall, leading directly into his old rooms. Salazar had connected most major rooms and different areas of the dungeons to the whole castle, so he could get anywhere in times of emergency or if he was just being lazy (though since Salazar being a Parselmouth wasn't well known until near the end of his life, he had to be extremely cautious).

Harry went through the doorway (letting it close behind him) and looked around. The rooms seemed mostly as he remembered them, though dust coated everything. He said a spell to get rid of it all; forced to do it without hand-movement or wand, as his arms were full of the large snake. He needed to be using more magic without props; he was getting lazy and he was sure that his magic wasn't recovered from all his time as Harry using only his wand with some occasional accidental magic.

He lay the snake down on a table and randomly pulled a book off of one of the shelves. Harry flipped through it; some nasty bloodmagicks…Ooh, it had pictures! He settled down to read it; the snake wouldn't wake up for a while and he didn't quite feel ready for the conversation yet.

Roughly an hour later he began to notice faint stirrings from where he had put down the snake. Harry continued to read, it would be easier to just let her start the conversation. It also had the bonus of often annoying the person he had to talk to.

-Sal?- There, the conversation had started.

-Yes?- He asked neutrally.

-Where…You're chambers?-

-Yes.-

-I…You're alive?-

-Yes, I am.-

-How?-

-I thought I brought you here to ask you questions.-

The snake gave a resigned sigh,

-Well, then, ask.-

-How are you alive, if you really are Serphenia?-

-I…don't really know. I think it has something to do with the fact that you died…but still lived. You raised me from an egg and that was enough to merit a bonding, but we never bonded. And yet a bond formed; a crude one, but a bond nonetheless. I should have died when you died but you didn't quite die properly and so I did not. I was only half alive…And then you were born again. I woke up from my stupor but only a little, only partially. I regained a little strength every year but then She came, She who smelled of Him. He commanded me through her and I was too weak to fight. He whispered revenge…had me attack students…But I didn't kill one, didn't take a life that wasn't mine to take…Not since the last time He commanded me. And then you came, though I didn't recognize you at first. And He had me attack you…I tried not to but He was too strong. You killed me but one of my fangs went deep in you're arm. I know what is and what is not a killing blow; you should be dead. I myself woke up just a month or two ago. I tried to find you but I didn't know where I was and the distance was too vast for the small snake I woke up as. It was then that I realized that I could change my shape. I flew as a bird to Hogwarts but you were not there. I stayed in the forbidden forest to wait for you, for I didn't know where your manor was. Then one night I could feel you close by but before I could get to you the magic twisted oddly. Then I appeared here but it is odd, different. I could feel you nearby but I couldn't get to you. I allowed myself to be seen in hopes that they could bring me to you and they did.-

Harry studied the snake in front of him. She was so much like Serphenia that he had no problem believing her story. It made sense. And it was not in a snake's nature to lie; he didn't know if it was even possible. But Slytherins didn't trust easily; he'd need more than just a story.

-Change your shape,- he commanded, -Something different.-

She appeared to be thinking. And then she changed slowly, scales melting into fur. It was not pretty to watch but fascinating and fluid. A few minutes later a black cat (young, only a kitten) appeared with large ears and emerald eyes to match his own. Her claws were also silver and she had two white stripes running down her sides; she looked almost exactly like a somewhat cuter and smaller version of the panther that he had once turned into, minus the wings and transferring the wing stripes onto the sides.

The kitten seemed puzzled, almost frowning,

-The coloring is off. I should be an orange tabby with hazel eyes, not like this. This draws far too much attention.-

Harry put his hand on her back and concentrated. Slowly the white disappeared into the midnight black but it was hard work. Finally she no longer appeared to be some sort of weird badger, though the Hufflepuff connection wouldn't be that bad. He was now convinced; he could not alter anyone's appearance except his own without a spell and familiars and other bonded creatures shared magic and magical talents.

-I have acquired some shapeshifting abilities. I'll explain it later. For now we need an excuse. As a snake you might be kicked out but as you are you are not against the rules. Can you hold this form?-

-Easily; once I have a new shape it will stay that way unless I wish it otherwise. I believe that's why it takes so long.-

-A name?- Harry asked, -I think Serphenia or Ser would work but steering away from anything snake-like would be best.-

-How about Bast? And you still haven't explained how you survived by bite.-

-Egyptian goddess symbolized as a cat. Not snake-like; cat-like. Sounds good. Bast it is, then. And as for surviving the bite…Godric's blasted phoenix happened to be there and she healed me. I think you'd remember…She ruined your eyes. That must have been painful.-

-Now that you mention it, I think I do remember seeing that annoying bird flying around before I lost my vision. I don't remember her actually doing it, it was very quick. What reason would she have to cure you?-

-Some other time I'll tell you the story of some kid named Harry Potter with too much luck for his own good. Not now, though.-

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Lily glanced across the Great Hall and sighed. As usual, Evan was missing from both the Slytherin and Gryffindor tables. She had barely seen her friend for over a week; ever since the school had found out he was a Parselmouth. Oh, he had attended all his classes, hadn't given anyone a reason to kick him out of the school. As it was, several parents were arguing against letting their child stay in school with a Parselmouth. Evan had been summoned to the headmaster's office a couple days ago, presumably to talk about this, but had walked out with no sign of emotion.

Evan had shown the school a side of him that nobody knew existed and, quite frankly, it scared her. It wasn't his knowledge of Parseltongue but his harsh coldness towards his friends and the rest of the school. He ignored everybody else and wouldn't talk to anybody except his cat, which had just appeared one day. The cat acted in the same manor towards the school as Evan did, haughty but vicious when anybody came too close to her, though she seemed almost accepting in the presence of Evan's friends. Evan, however, was not and Lily was fed up with it. Why wouldn't he just talk to them? Why did he lock himself up in his own world, not allowing anyone else to reach him? Weren't they friends?

Remus didn't know how to act. He was shunned by the rest of the Marauders and had taken to sitting with Lily at mealtimes but it was obvious that he was hurt by Evan's behavior. Severus was acting with a cold neutrality that rivaled Evan's own, though without the hostile air that shimmered under Evan's cool exterior.

Well, she would do something about it. Lily narrowed her eyes at Evan's usual seat, starting to plan. There must be some way to heal the rift that had caused between so many friends. There must be some way to talk to Evan, to make him hear them…

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

-Why do you treat your friends this way?- Asked Serphenia, the hisses sounding a bit odd coming from the black cat that sat on Salazar's bed.

-What do you mean?- Harry asked, looking up from the book he was reading. He had taken to avoiding the Slytherin and Gryffindor common rooms and instead slept in Salazar's rooms.

-You know what I mean,- Serphenia said, twitching her tail in annoyance, -Why don't you speak to them at all? Why do you hide emotion around others and hide yourself around friends? Why do you smell of blood when you go to bed? Why do you let nightmares haunt your dreams?-

Harry's face became guarded,

-I…-

-Don't you hide yourself from me, too! Don't answer me with untruths if you don't plan to tell! Don't hide…please…I don't want to loose you again,- She sounded miserable.

-Ser, I…I won't lie to you. Just…I don't…I don't know what to say to anybody. I don't want them to get into trouble being associated with me. I don't want them to hate me.-

-They are you're friends! They wouldn't hate you!-

-How would you know? You've never met them?-

-You wouldn't let those unworthy near you! How can you think your friends would turn on you?-

-Well, maybe _I_ don't trust my judgment.- He got up, grabbed a cloak, -I'm going for a walk.-

-I won't pry. I'm sorry. Just come back, okay?-

-Of course I will. Even if it takes another thousand years, I won't abandon you. Though, by all means, _you_ don't have to wait that long. I've made you wait enough.- And he left.

There it was again! That same little box, green with a silver bow, again in that same spot by the lake. So why did he keep passing it? He was going into the forest, had walked towards it in a strait line and, after all, it wasn't that hard to miss. For some reason, however, he kept passing this same part of the lake, where the little box sat waiting for him. There was a spell at work here and a powerful one; it would take him a while to break it. He reached into his pocket and paused. Of all the nights to leave his wand in Salazar's chambers! It didn't matter; he could break the spell, though it would take a bit more work.

Harry assumed that it worked similarly to the Muggle Repelling charms that made Muggles simply walk the other direction, except that it kept him in the same area instead of repelling him from it. So, that was how it went, then? Well, now he knew, he should be able to get away.

A few minutes later, he sat down and frowned. A strong spell, one that he was sure few people in Hogwarts could cast. Who would go to all the trouble to make sure that someone (him specifically?) was here, perhaps made to touch the box? Well, of course he wouldn't go and touch the box. He sat down, willing to let the spell wear off or wait until help came. Doing so, he accidentally brushed a rock nearby, the size of his fist. Except, he didn't just brush it, his hand stuck to it. It was a Portkey!

Of course! Now he was angry at himself; the box hadn't been the trap, it had kept his attention away from his surroundings. Whoever had set the trap had waited for him to touch the rock eventually; there was, after all, only limited space to wonder around. And the trapped person could try to throw the rock in frustration, sit on it, or do something else with it that involved touching. It wasn't improbable.

He landed with a sudden thump and fell backwards. Poorly made Portkeys yanked his magic around nauseously and this one had not been made as carefully as the rest of the trap. Besides, it would be in his advantage to appear harmless as possible. It was an appearance he would probably quickly lose, as he was annoyed at being taken so suddenly and his anger that had been simmering all week was begging to be let out.

He looked around, trying not to lose focus of what he needed to be doing, which was try and find out where he was and how to leave as quickly as possible. It wasn't that difficult, Harry was surrounded by a bunch of black-robed, white-masked people who were bowing to a snake-like, red-eyed man.

"I take it this isn't the Gobstone's Club?" he asked the closest Death Eater politely. The Death Eater's eyes, visible through the mask, looked confused at his presence, causing Harry to internally smirk. They weren't even prepared for his visit. This should be easy.

He darted towards the door quickly but someone came up behind him, snapping onto his wrists a pair of thick manacles,

"Quiet," she hissed and Harry had to contain his new anger at the sound of his godfather's murderer's voice, "You are in the presence of the Dark Lord. You'd do best to not show any disrespect." But Harry smirked internally, putting for show a worried look. He had expected the room to be warded but he had managed to grab his attacker's wand without her realizing it. The manacles were anti-magic but he would be able to get out of them eventually.

"But…" He said with tearfully, his lower lip trembling, "I'll be late to the Gobstones Club and I promised I wouldn't be late again. They'll kick me out if I don't show up."

"Gobstones are the least of your worry, boy!" Bellatrix snarled, "Now quiet…Or would you like me to rip your tongue out? I hear you can speak Parseltongue…I'm sure any potions master would give anything to have even a small portion of it."

"Ew, gross!" Harry said, wrinkling his nose in disgust.

Bellatrix raised her hand to strikehim but Voldemort stilled her arm with a touch,

"And I would pay even more. For him intact, including his tongue."

"Forgive me, my lord," and now she groveled at his feet and even Harry couldn't completely hide his disdainful sneer, "I overstepped. Please, my lord, I meant no offense or harm to the plan."

-Now,- he hissed to Evan, -I heard you could speak the language, boy. What can I offer you in return for your allegiance?- _Apart from my lif_e? Harry wondered idly, but he supposed Voldemort didn't want to appear threatening, -I am Lord Vol…-

"Oh, there's no need to introduce yourself, my lord," Harry made his voice sound eager, imitating the Death Eater's way of speaking to Voldemort, "I've heard all about you. I've spent my whole life aspiring to be just like you, my lord."

Voldemort smirked a bit,

"Well then, will you join me?"

"Join you?" and now he made his voice confused, "Why would you need anyone's help? Gobstones is a one-on-one game…"

"Gobstones?" Voldemort's tone was angry, "Why do you speak to me about Gobstones?"

"Well, my lord, you're the champ, aren't you? You've beat everyone else out there! I heard you've never lost a game of Gobstones in your _life_!"

"I do not play Gobstones!" Voldemort snarled.

Harry wilted, looking disappointed,

"Well, then, what do you do?"

"I rule!" Voldemort snapped, "I command great armies. I will soon be in control of the whole wizarding world! Muggles will cower at my…"

But Harry cut off Voldemort's rant,

"No."

Voldemort blinked and narrowed his eyes. Obviously he wasn't used to being told "no".

"Excuse me?" He snarled.

"No!" Harry shouted, putting on his best Gryffindor mask, "I'll never join you!" He collapsed into a fit of giggles, "Sorry, I've been wanting to say that for the longest time. Anyways, the answer's still no." Vaguely he decided that he'd had _way_ too much desert when he had visited the house-elves for dinner. Sugar did funny things to a person. But he wanted to get Voldemort angry and careless and it helped with his anger so why not?

"You'll change your mind soon. You'd be surprised what a little bit of torture would do to a person. Welcome to the real world, Gryffindor." He ordered the nearest Death Eatersto put Harry in a cage reinforced with anti-magic spells.

Harry soon got into the pattern of the way things were done at Voldemort's base. He was fed little and taken out of the cage only to be tortured and they were careful to leave the anti-magic manacles on. The torture itself wasn't bad; Voldemort forbid any visible damage to his new toy; he seemed certain that Evan would join him any day now. The anti-magic spells on the cage and manacles prevented him from channeling magic into spells but not defenses, so any damage from spells and potions he could block without them realizing. Of course, he played the slowly-going-insane prisoner and, it seemed, played his part to perfection, for the Death Eaters who often tortured Muggles and defiant wizards and witches didn't notice a thing.

So he sat now, huddled in a corner a couple days later, waiting for the opportunity to free himself. It annoyed him immensely that he couldn't kill Voldemort or many of the Death Eaters when he left but he _really_ didn't want to cause a paradox, especially after coming this far, so he had to be careful.

Oops, he had lost himself in thought a little there. Someone had entered his cage when he wasn't paying attention. Harry leapt to his feat and then into a defensive crouch, baring his teeth, growling, and hissing at the intruder. He found it quite entertaining to play the feral animal. The Death Eaters though his mind had been reduced to almost nothing, though he made a big show of acting quite human some of the time. It had only been a couple days, after all.

"Food," the Death Eater grunted, "Eat up, it's entertaining when they throw up whatever they managed to stuff down."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Severus certainly felt like throwing up. Evan's cat sat next to him, looking at him forlornly.

"I'll get him back," he promised the cat, "No matter what. But not in a Gryffindor way; I'll do what I can when I can." And he had. Earlier that week he had offered his services to Dumbledore as a spy. It's not that he hadn't been wanting to do it for a while but he didn't trust the old man, not like the Gryffindors did. But neither did he trust the Dark Lord. He would be the perfect Slytherin, not quite on one side but not quite on the other. But he needed to learn to shield his mind. Right now it was considered disrespectful to look directly into the Dark Lord's eyes but he would have to crawl up the ladder of power. And what of Dumbledore?

The Dark Mark gave the expected burning and he grabbed the potions. He looked at the clear vials sadly but he had to do it. The Dark Lord had ordered them _all_ to. He could only hope that he wouldn't hurt his friend badly or give himself away, unable to do it at all.

He apparated away.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

(Frowns) Okie; that might have been a _little_ bit of a cliffhanger. But I had to end it 'cause I have to get dinner and to my homework. Motivation well paused and sprung back up again so I don't know when the next update will be. Hopefully soon. And I have _no_ idea what type of metaphor that was supposed to be about the well.

Ack! Too much humor in this chapter…It's the fault of my muses, not me. Me 'n Sal wanted this to be all angsty and stuff. A little too much Tainted Betrayal sinking in here. _That_ was supposed to be where I channel all the humor…But I don't feel like writing it…

Another quick update; I really have to go. Errors will be fixed tomorrow (maybe) and all that stuff.


	15. Contemplation Jailbreak

Finally, a Dark Angel update! Sorry it's taken so long, everybody! Not reaaaally super long but not a short chapter, either! Enjoy!

_Would the people at school notice him gone? Like he may be hiding from them by you said he still went to classes so wouldn't they notice him gone?_

_Yes, but different students have different opinions on this. Some think he just stopped bothering showing up to classes and was sulking (probably in the Slytherin dorms and dungeons). Some thought he was dead. Well, really, there were all sorts of rumors, some of which including him joining Voldemort or already being a Death Eater (or even being Voldemort in disguise). Dumbledore, having checked the wards and whatever else allows him to rule over the school in all his omnipotence, knows he's gone but not where he went and so far hasn't made the fact public. Lily is still looking for him so she can force him to get along with everybody again. Remus is being hurt _and_ being encouraged by Lily…as well as being dragged into her plot. The Marauders are the ones spreading rumors so…And, well, we know what Sev's doing._

_Will someone find out that he shouldn't belong in the Marauder's era? And what's with all that shape shifting from Harry AND Sal's snake?_

_Really, the idea that someone you know is from another time is pretty farfetched (even if that person is a little odd) and, as far as I know, there's no way to tell unless Evan accidentally lets something slip that hasn't happened yet and even that can be explained away as a prediction. Harry can shapeshift so his familiar, who shares his magic, has also acquired the ability._

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Except some stuff. 'Some stuff' doesn't include Harry Potter or I'd have enough money to buy a lot of stuff instead of just some. Right?

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Fifteen: Contemplation Jailbreak **

Harry was bored. And annoyed. Sure, it was punishment enough for allowing himself to be tricked by such a simple trap but he had been 'tortured' enough, in his opinion. Playing the defiant Gryffindor and annoying the Death Eaters was fun but, though he hadn't had very much fun since his last prank against the Marauders, it got old very quickly. Besides, it was against his nature to allow himself to be captured, chained even, even though it was to his advantage that his capturers believe they had the upper hand. It seemed that all he had been doing for a long time was playing down on his abilities, letting Dumbledore, Snape (from Harry's time), and Voldemort have false control over him.

But the main part of it was that he was bored. There was little to do here: sleep, eat, wait to be tortured, scream, annoy the Death Eaters, and pretend to be insane. There weren't any books (or at least ones that were available to him) and pranks weren't taken well here. Not that he hadn't tried, but he could only use small ones that wouldn't draw attention to himself; Bellatrix had developed a nasty rash that changed colors and several Death Eaters had been caught humming on the odd occasion. His magic was still locked up and he couldn't access more than a small drop at a time; nowhere near the mere trickle that he would need to break free of the manacles.

Now it was time for the next torture session, worsening his frustration by reminding him of the fact that he couldn't be stubborn; he had to scream like any other prisoner no matter how undignified it was. The Gryffindor and Slytherin parts of his mind were battling quite fiercely on the subject; though he wanted to fight against his captors, he _had_ to appear harmless until he found an opening. The anti-magic manacles were brilliantly crafted so he couldn't break the spells easily, despite the strength of his magic, for he couldn't access it; or, rather, he couldn't use any external magic. Thankfully enough, he was dangerous without a wand or even a weapon so he didn't have to worry much about his own safety, only whether or not he would be able to escape from this boring prison.

There was a rattle and Harry leapt up into a rough crouch, his hair brushing the stone ceiling of his too-small cell. The heavy bars gave another rattle as the Death Eater (sent, presumably to fetch 'Evan') magically unlocked the door. While there was nothing that discouraged escape more than a good, old-fashioned, heavy lock, it appeared as if those were too crudely Muggle for Voldemort to use. Harry would have been able to escape from one of those, too, unless it was warded; Harry had learned the art of picking locks from the twins after discovering its usefulness and Salazar to had found use for the skill on occasion. All this lock needed was a magical 'password', a small burst of magic belonging to a keyed magical aura, a spell simple enough for Harry to break, had he not been tied up by those accursed magical chains.

A large hand reached into the cage to try and drag Harry out but he darted away and hid in the furthest corner of the cage. The Death Eater smirked at his seemingly pitiful attempts and pushed his arm in further but it stopped just short of Harry, who was pushing himself as flat to the opposite bars as possible. He resisted the urge to stick his tongue out at the Death Eater or something equally immature but couldn't hold back a soft snicker. The Death Eater scowled and ducked his head into the cage, grabbing the front of Harry's robes with his huge hands. Harry was suddenly reminded forcibly of Uncle Vernon. He scowled at the man, angry that the Death Eater had ruined his fun.

"Who's laughing now?" The Death Eater jeered, pulling Harry out of the cage. Or at least he attempted to, Harry was not clinging onto the opposite bars with all his might. The Death Eater made a grunting sound and pulled harder. Okay, then, it was time to go on the offensive. Feral, he was supposed to be acting feral. His hands and feet were occupied by trying to regain lost ground, though he was slowly slipping backwards. There was only one option, really and why not? It had worked on Remus. Granted, he expected Remus to have much better hygiene than the Death Eaters like this big one, who looked and behaved much like Crabbe and Goyle. But he simply could not let idiots like this big Death Eater get the better of him, no matter the advantage or disadvantage. Harry bit the Death Eater on one of the arms that had claimed his robes (tattered, dirty, and frayed robes, which appeared like they would rip any second). The man let go with a shout and, cursing, withdrew his arm from the cage.

Harry spit out the taste of dirt and who knew what other filth that had accumulated on the Death Eater's hands and arms. There also seemed to be a bit of blood, though he was unsure whether he had bitten hard enough to draw blood (he certainly hadn't held back) or if the blood was from…something else. The idea wasn't altogether reassuring and Harry spat again.

Smirking, he crawled back to 'his' corner and waited for the next Death Eater that was brave enough to approach 'his' cage. This particular little game usually ended with a cursing Bellatrix dragging Harry over to wherever Voldemort and the other Death Eaters were waiting, threatening him all the while. Harry knew they were empty threats, though, as Voldemort wanted him unharmed, except for the torture by potions and spells – he was a Parselmouth, after all, and Voldemort wanted him on their side. Voldemort probably did not want a scared or handicapped person constantly around him, Pettegrew was definitely enough.

Bellatrix did eventually drag him from his cage and was currently hissing insults and threats at him but Harry wasn't listening. It was time he had a little fun; after all, Slytherins were well known for their talent at mind-games. Even merely annoying the Death Eaters would wear away at them bit by bit and possible get him closer to escape. Bonus points if he could unnerve a whole group of them.

They passed through corridor after torch-lit corridor while Harry quietly mused at the difference between these stone passages and Hogwarts' own. For one thing, Salazar had built Hogwarts' dungeons so, automatically, those qualified as better and more worthy than these. These walls were a deeper slate color than Hogwarts' light grey and there were no lines to show the border between individual stones; the walls appeared to be made of one giant slab of stone. The torches here were also dimmer and further spaced than the ones in most Hogwarts corridors. Apart from that…There really wasn't anything. Rock was rock. Hogwarts was just Hogwarts and that made her special. Harry felt slightly homesick. Oh, well…he'd better hurry up and escape, then, so he could see the old castle again.

Bellatrix and Harry arrived at the usual destination, a fairly large room somewhere in the lower levels of Voldemort's base, and Bellatrix pushed him forward so he landed in a sprawled heap on the ground before returning to the semi-circle of solid black that was the other Death Eaters. Semi-circle instead of the usual circular 'role-call' because Harry was to be tied to the wall instead of chained up in the middle of the circle as he had been when Voldemort had returned in his fourth year. The two heavier Death Eaters that had been following the Bellatrix and the prisoner to their destination, the two who were originally sent to fetch Harry, grabbed his arms and tied him to the wall by the heavy manacles.

Medieval as it might have seemed, it made him the easiest target for potions and spells without giving him an opportunity to fight back. And, of course, wizards were rarely accused of being 'modern', especially the purebloods. Harry was lucky that wizards of this day and age had very poor defenses; that meant that the newer and 'improved' spells and potions were easier to block and, even if he failed, they hardly did any damage to him anyways. Potions _were_ harder to block so it was good that none of the Death Eaters could brew potions one hundred per cent correctly. Even the littlest flaw could be pinpointed and the potion would often become useless against him; his own defensive internal magic able to break the incorrect potions down into harmless ingredients, the healing ones negating the harmful ones. The potions that worked, the ones actually brewed without any major flaws or the ones containing harmful ingredients unable to be canceled out by the more benevolent ones…Well magics nowadays were practically harmless. The only thing that worried him was that Voldemort might soon get bored of him and allow other, more "Muggle" torture methods.

But all that aside, this torture session was just the same as all of the rest. Except for not, somehow. Harry looked around at the Death Eaters, slightly puzzled. This meeting was different…how? And then it hit him; these were no longer the twisted adults that served Voldemort but the younger Death Eaters, the frightened children, most forced to take his mark. Of course, he thought as his eyes fell on a haughty child that had to be Lucious Malfoy, there were those that were proud of the mark they bore.

But this was more personal. Before, when he had been at Hogwarts, he had enough to do trying to keep the timelines strait. Evan had no influence within the Serpent house and he could do nothing but watch as his house tore itself apart over Salazar's supposed heir. Even as he was tortured, there was nothing he could do; the Death Eaters who tortured him were adults and, no matter which house they had belonged to when (or if) they attended Hogwarts, most of them were as twisted and cruel as Voldemort himself. But these _children_ were his Slytherins, his that he should have, might have, been able to protect had he been Head of Slytherin. Nothing against the current Head, of course, but the Slytherins didn't trust her and she was too busy clutching onto her tentative position to help her house, no matter how much she might have tried.

Could he do anything, communicate with any of them, without causing a paradox? He wouldn't contact any (or at least most) Death Eaters he knew from his time, not because of the fact that he knew what they would become but because these were the haughty ones that stood by Voldemort's side, overflowing with their belief of their own self-importance. Harry's own rather lose view of time-travel was that this had all already happened and that, while his own wish to not cause a paradox prevented several, if he act naturally as he would without his knowledge of what was to come, it would all work itself out in the end. For all he knew, even if he tried it might be impossible to kill Voldemort in this time because it simply hadn't happened. Well, for all he knew, he could have killed Voldemort and replaced him with a highly-intelligent monkey, if that was how the future was supposed to be (though he somewhat doubted it). Or perhaps being thrown back in time had created an alternate reality separate to his own so, no matter what he did here, nothing in his world would change. There were too many variables and no real way of knowing; at least until he got back to his own time and then it would be too late to do anything in the past.

Harry argued to himself for several minutes while the Death Eaters shifted nervously, unsure who was to start as their 'Lord' had yet to arrive. In the end, after he had chased his line of thought around several circles and contradicted himself at least twice, he decided that he was fed up with not doing anything and he didn't care about destiny and paradoxes. They were his Slytherins, after all, and he could hardly sit around doing nothing. Nobody had ever actually proved anything about time travel and its effects, anyways; most of it was just theory. He had the feeling that what he was doing was probably more Gryffindor rashness but found that he didn't care.

Now, how could he contact the Slytherins without Voldemort knowing? Speech was impossible…but not Mindspeech. Wasn't that how he had contacted Draco when he had rescued him and Snape from Voldemort? But he'd only ever tried Mindspeech as a spirit and that was without the wild magical imbalance…But then what did he care. His entire life (well, both of them) was full of impossibilities and improbabilities.

Harry smirked. Let the games begin.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Severus groveled appropriately as Voldemort appeared. He carefully kept his face and mind blank of all emotion, not allowing even disgust at himself for bowing down to the 'Dark Lord'. Lord Voldemort was a powerful Legilimence and he knew not even the basics of Occlumency. Thankfully, the lower ranks weren't seen as worthy enough to even look up during meetings and only the higher-ranked Death Eaters were seen as 'worthy' or bold enough to look their master in the eye.

He fingered the vials lying innocently in the hidden pocket of his robes. They tinkled softly as they bumped against each other. Seven bottles, he reviewed silently, each with varying degrees of clearness, all highly-ranked in difficulty and made specifically for torture. The quicker he rose in the ranks of the Death Eaters, the more people he could save, including Evan. That is, if his friend survived much longer. The Slytherin knew all to well the chances of getting his friend out of Voldemort's lair alive. His own poisons would only add to his friend's misery. Hand-brewed as the potions were, he knew that each had minute flaws, probably the only potions that he would ever botch on purpose, though he had no delusions about the ineffectiveness of the potions. They were still just as horrible, just as painful as they originally would have been.

Severus snapped his mind back to the present as Voldemort stopped speaking, motioning for the first Death Eater, a trembling fifth year, to step forward and show Voldemort what impressive torture spell or potion he had found. The fifth year stepped up and paused, seemingly readying himself for the spell he was going to cast, gripping his wand tightly.

Evan suddenly looked up, emerald gaze focused on the fifth year. The younger Slytherin flinched and took a step back. They stared at each other for a few seconds before the fifth year blinked and took another step back, shaking his head a little. His grip on his wand tightened and he pointed it at Evan, shooting a burst of black, crackling lightning-like magic towards Evan.

Severus winced and balled his hands into fists to stop them from flying up to cover his ears as his friend's screams filled the large chamber. The fifth year stepped back to his spot among the Death Eaters, looking simultaneously shaken and smug.

The rest of the Hogwarts-attending Death Eaters present stepped forward one by one and something similar happened to each of them. Evan looked at each of the Death Eaters and either simply looked down again or stared at the Death Eater for a minute before one of them looked away. Then the Death Eater either shot a spell at Evan or shoved a potion down his throat. The screams were the same, anyways.

All too soon it was Severus's turn. He walked up to middle of the half-circle, gripping the vial of the first potion so tightly that he was sure the delicate glass would crack right there in his pocket, despite all the charms to prevent it from doing so. His friend did not look up as he had done with the other Death Eaters. Maybe he was unconscious; maybe the Dark Lord would allow the torture to end here. Severus would have laughed (well, not aloud) if the situation was less serious; that was too close to merciful and mercy was something the Dark Lord simply did _not_ do. He hesitated.

"What are you waiting for," Voldemort asked. Severus gulped; he had not meant to catch the Dark Lord's attention in such a way.

"My Lord, he is not looking up," he replied evasively, hoping his voice sounded more natural than it did to his ears.

Voldemort raised his wand but at that moment 'Evan' looked up,

"Ah, sorry," He said cheerfully, as if he hadn't just been tortured and screaming for over an hour nonstop, "Didn't realize there was another one there. Must have miscounted." He grinned disarmingly. He looked totally out of place. He got a _crucio_ for his efforts anyways.

Breathing heavily after the screaming but still grinning cheerfully he looked over at Severus. Vivid green eyes met black and Severus was sure that his friend recognized him. Or was he just being paranoid.

"Go on then," the captive said in a not-quite-goading tone, "Let's see what _you_ have up your sleeves." Was there a meaning behind that careful emphasis on 'you' or was he, once again, just being paranoid?

Figuring that that was just about as much an invitation as anything and that Voldemort would just kill them both (or just him) if he refused, he approached his friend carefully, pulling the vial out of his pocket, relieved to see that it hadn't cracked. His friend appraised the vial and the potion inside warily and…was that a flash of approval in those emerald eyes? What the _hell_?

He carefully opened the vial (the tops had, recently become more _muggle_ seeing as corks and such could interfere with the potions) and raised it to his friend's lips. And paused. Again. Later he would swear to Voldemort that he just wanted to create suspense and torment the prisoner but at the moment he was seriously considering just dropping the vial, grabbing his friend, and getting the hell out of there. His fantasy didn't last long but a squeamish sensation still filled the pit of his stomach. He hesitated very, very briefly. If he didn't get on with it, Voldemort would just _crucio_ both of them.

:Do it.: A voice (Evan's voice?) echoed firmly in his head. Severus was sure he was hallucinating. Perhaps he was trying to justify his actions slightly. Whatever the cause, it was what made him tip the bottle. His friend's screams nearly made him flinch but he knew that if he gave away any such emotions at this point in time he was in trouble.

He pulled the second vial out of his pocket, making sure that his hands stopped trembling before they were removed from the black cloth. The second time was a bit easier but still he hesitated. No voice was there to guide him this time. Severus emptied the second vile into Evan's mouth feeling…hollow.

:And if you don't mind: the voice was talking to him again, despite Evan's screams:If I could borrow just a bit of your magic…Of course when I say borrow I mean steal, as there really is no way to give it back, though it would come back eventually on it's own. I could always give you some of my own if you really want. Wouldn't recommend it, though; it might have some strange unforeseeable consequences.: And then he muttered in a way that made Severus feel like he wasn't meant to hear:Doesn't it always:

And this was all purely ridiculous, Severus decided as he emptied a third vial, as he didn't even have a way to answer. And _no_, there was not anyone to answer, as this was all a figment of his imagination. Nevertheless he decided to try in the only way he could: he thought back.

:Um…: And Slytherin's simply did not say 'um'. Ignoring his pitiful first attempt he tried for another:How:

:Just skin contact, you know, I should be able to do the rest myself. Push my head back so you can pour some more of that potion (nice job by the way, I won't even bother telling you about the flaws, since I'm sure you already know all of them) down my throat or 'accidentally' touch my face when you're giving me the next potion: The voice suggested hopefully:I promise not to take to much. Of course that's according to your standards since I don't even know what would happen to you if I take 'not much' in my own standards of magic out of you.: The voice (Evan?) seemed to realize that it was rambling and was suddenly quiet. And then Severus realized that the screams were quite too and dumped another vial of potion down his friend's throat, trying not to think about what he was doing and focusing more on the conversation, hallucination or not.

Severus considered. It was all a figment of his imagination, so it couldn't hurt, right? And if it wasn't, it was Evan and Severus trusted his friend. He paused and thought back. Did he really trust him and truly consider Evan his friend? Trust was a dangerous thing among Slytherins and 'friendship' was not even in their vocabulary.

:Okay.: He eventually decided.

:Thanks, Sev: and his friend's voice was relieved. There was no doubt about who it was now, he doubted even the 'voices'-that-did-not,-apparently,-reside-in-his-head-after-all would call him by that ridiculous name:I really owe you for this. Not sure what I would do without it but…I would'a thought of something. Of course what I thought of was asking you so…Yeah…But I'll make it up to you some day…: there was an awkward sounding pause on the other end before he continued:…I promise.:

And then he stopped screaming and slumped, eyes staring at the ground in a dull way that made Severus shiver. He knew that it was an act, though, and pushed his friend's face up. A small portion of his magic…leached…from him; there was no other way to describe it. Just a gentle almost pulling sensation and then it was gone. He turned around and joined the other Death Eaters without even bothering to 'say' something back.

:I'm making my escape the night after next. Possibly Voldemort will not be calling you for a while afterwards: There was a slight smirk in Evan's voice:If you would like to talk, I'll meet with you in the second dungeon passageway off of the Great Hall, in the room behind the tapestry of those witches around that huge cauldron.:

:Oh, so now you're talking to me again: Even winced but before he could reply, Severus answered:Fine, I'll be there.:

Two days left to go before he would be able to escape from the horrible place. It probably could have been sooner but he wanted to draw attention away from the new recruits, particularly Severus.

He could wait that long.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Despite the ominous feeling that lingered in the air for the next few days, the night of Harry's escape came quickly and without a hitch. It was almost too easy the way that he had been able to slip out of his manacles and cage with some external magic to help him. Without the chains restricting his magic, all of a sudden he could do anything he wanted. It was quite frightening, actually, but he got over the sensation pretty quickly.

As much as he wanted to both hex and prank Voldemort and his followers until they could no longer harm or terrorize him or anything else (an odd cross between both his natural Gryffindor reactions and his Slytherin ones), he did not want to underestimate this particular Dark Lord ever again and so he crept quietly and made his way outside of Voldemort's 'lair', that itself a feat that took a lot of concentration and careful wandering, as he did not dare to use his magic so soon. Carefully whispering an incantation, he watched as a pale blue-violet mist descended on the castle-like building, filling the space inside the invisible dome that was the wards. The mist thickened rapidly until you could not see inside at all.

Harry surveyed his handiwork carefully. It was a sleeping spell far, far too advanced to be taught at Hogwarts unless it was a specialized class and even then it was just too difficult and dangerous to use or practice carelessly. It would (hopefully) keep Voldemort and his companions asleep for a month or two and by the end of that time Harry would most likely be back in his own time, taking with him all memories of 'Evan'. It was painfully obvious that, in the future, nobody remembered him, judging from the reactions of all the people that he met in both this time and his own.

And so, in the next month or two, he would have to get _everything_ that he needed done in this time done including, most likely, some sort of memory charm that would cover…some large amount of space that he did not even want to think about. After all, at least some students had most certainly written something about 'Evan' to their parents or siblings or friends. Or even in their diaries. He could put a type curse on the name 'Evan Harrison' but it was too common a name to do something like that.

So he was having a tough time with that.

He needed to visit the library.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Was going to do more but…Nah, let's just leave it like that. I'll _try_ and update soon, promise. If the writing part of my brain keeps working I just couldn't write further than this (I'm not sure if it's because my inspiration died or not but I think it's just because my muses thought it was a nice place to stop). I was going to add more outside of the captured-by-Voldemort part but…Yeah.

Sorry it was so boring!

You know, I noticed a funny thing. I get fewer reviews if I update sooner because I don't give you so much time to reply. But I'll try and review quickly anyways, so please review; it's not as fun without comments!

Review!


	16. A Gryffindor Foolishness

Here's another one, two days in a row! Hope you enjoy; not sure how long this writing-streak's going to last.

_Slytherin must have a staggering amount of magic, has it recovered from the timetrip already?_

_Well, yes he does, all of the founders did. His magic was upset at being jerked around but remained mostly normal even when traveling through time. It was the surrounding magic that was busy trying to deal with this time-intruder and the massive amount of magic that had poured in from the other time, when Hogwarts was trying to save Harry. If that makes any sense. If that's what you were asking._

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Sixteen: A Gryffindor Foolishness**

Harry apparated back into Hogwarts in a flash of dancing rainbow lights and promptly fell down. In front of no less then five watching eyes.

"It has been a while since I last did anything like that," he felt it was necessary to explain that out loud to both himself and the students that were watching him open-mouthed. He stood up and brushed himself off, looking at his own torn, bloody, and filthy robes with disgust. It was not the sort of image he would like to present to anyone, much less Gryffindors. Ah, well, it was too late now.

"Hey, Sev, would you happen to have my wand?" He asked hopefully to the only other Slytherin there, who seemed to be in the middle of a fight with Potter and Black, while Remus and Lily appeared to be trying to break it up.

"You're early," His friend stated, tossing him his wand, which he caught easily and proceeded to start casting cleaning and cloth-repairing spells on himself and his cloths, "If you had given me a little more time, I would have gotten rid of the Gryffindors."

"No, it doesn't ma-" He was cut off as a black blur rammed into his stomach, clawing her way up his torso and newly repaired shirt to his shoulder.

-_Apologize,- _Serphenia, or, rather, Bast, hissed into his ear, -_to your friends. Now.-_

"Um…I'm sorry?" He offered meekly to a calm Severus and a Lily who was looking alarmingly like Mrs. Weasley at her angriest. Bast hissed angrily in his ear and dug her claws into his shoulder. Harry gave her a pitiful look and she leapt gracefully off of his shoulder, stalking haughtily down the hall.

"Where have you _been?_" Lily shouted and Harry cowered, wondering if all redhead mothers (future mothers? All mothers?) shared the ability to both terrify you and make you feel immensely guilty.

"Um…elsewhere?" He presented in the same meek voice that he had used before but Lily paid him no mind, continuing to rant.

"We've all been worried _sick_ about you for the last couple days, no, last couple _weeks_! You barely show up in class, you don't even _talk_ to us…" Lily continued to list all of his wrongdoings, "_Everyone _was worried about you! Even _Potter_ was worried about you."

"Don't be silly," Harry interrupted, "Potter hates my guts."

"Which just goes to show _how much_ everyone was worried! And then you just _apparate_ to where we are, which is supposed to be _impossible_ in Hogwarts and you try to say 'I'm sorry'?"

"Um…I'm sorry?" Harry repeated meekly. Lily's eyes flashed but before she could say anything else, Harry cut in, "I was called away for something important. Family emergency," Which was the truth if he stretched it far enough, "And I could only get back just now so…"

Severus's raised an eyebrow and filed that information away for later. Evan looked like was telling the truth, or at least a half-truth. That meant that Evan's family was somehow connected to the Dark Lord, whether they belonged to the Death Eaters or had been killed by them.

Sirius snorted from behind him,

"That's a lame excuse."

"It's true," Harry stated, his voice icy.

"Your family is dead," James spoke up, "Dumbledore told us."

"My mother is dead," Harry repeated flatly, "And the muggles tried to take me away from the magical world. That is how I arrived here. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some things I need to take care of."

"Evan Harrison!" And Lily's voice was filled with the authority that definitely belonged to a mother, "You are _not_ leaving until we get this whole mess sorted out."

"Yes, _mother_," Harry said, sarcastically yet not. Someone laughed, though Harry wasn't quite sure who it was.

Lily smiled in a sweetly dangerous way and said,

"I think that's enough. You can take them away now."

A hole opened beneath their feet and Harry, Severus, Remus, James, and Sirius all fell down…down…down until…_Whumph_! Their fall was broken, oddly enough, by a large pile of pillows, mattresses, and other soft things. Harry bounced a bit and then shot to his feet.

"Hey, Lily, come on! Be reasonable!" He begged.

"And don't leave that room until you start talking to everyone again!" And with that there was a sort of slamming, as if a door had closed, and there was a ceiling to the room. Lily was no longer there.

There was laughter in Harry's head and he immediately realized who was responsible for the sudden attack.

"You! You traitor!" He yelled angrily, "I was the one who helped…" 'build you' was what he had in mind but he remembered that he was being watched by, not only Severus, but Moony, Padfoot, and Prongs. Wormtail was, strangely enough, missing and Harry was grateful that he didn't have to stay for what would probably be a long time with that particular Marauder. "Let. Me. Out! C'mon, I have rights, you know. I helped so I get so and so control, right? So come on, let me out?"

The castle replied with an amused sounding thought about how the room that they were in was _Helga's_ room and so Salazar had no control over this particular part of the castle. Looking around, Harry realized that he was, indeed, in the Room of Requirements.

"Fine, be that way. But when I get out, I'm going to prank you so bad that…" He paused. How would you prank a castle? "That you won't be able to tell the difference form the Slytherin and Gryffindor common rooms. Or the Hufflepuff or the Ravenclaw. Or the Great Hall from the Astronomy Tower from the Dungeons from the Lake."

"And why," he continued ranting, "Didn't you force _her_ to join us, huh? _She's_ the one who wants us to get along, right? So _she_ should be the one here!" The castle listened, seemingly unimpressed by his logic. :Well, how about this, then. I have rights to the passages outside of this room. Therefore I can change them to lead to this room.: It all sounded nice and logical, as loopholes usually did, and the castle couldn't think of an answer. Harry grinned, "Glad you agree."

"What are you doing?" Sirius asked at the same time as James said, "Who're you talking to?"

Harry ignored both of them and merely walked across the room, and, touching the wall, hissed something in parseltongue. Sirius was about to angrily demand that Evan explained what he was doing when Lily ran into the room. She made a surprised sound and started to turn around to where the door was but it was gone and momentum carried her into James, who had been standing just a couple more inches to the right just a moment ago.

"Well then," Harry said, satisfied, "Now that everyone's here…"

"What do you want?" James asked, getting up and helping Lily to her feet, "Whatever it is, leave Lily out of it!"

"…What did you want us to talk about, Lily?" Harry continued, ignoring the other Gryffindor.

"Um," Lily started as everyone turned to look at her, "You weren't talking to anybody and you were always fighting with James and Sirius so…"

"_You_ did this, Lily?" James asked, surprised.

"How long does this spell last?" Harry asked her calmly.

"A week."

Harry raised an eyebrow,

"Isn't that a bit excessive?"

"What spell?" asked Severus, who hadn't said anything since they fell into the room.

"We're stuck in this room for a week. Lily's free to go, since I've yet to add her to the spell, and I won't unless someone else would like to. Oh and by the way, Lily, you'll have to bring us some food and drinks or we might die from dehydration at least. I'm pretty sure all of us could go a week without food but it might be unpleasant. Anything in this room is just an illusion so…"

"Right," She said, "I'll bring some food and drinks from lunch."

"Might be easier to get them directly from the kitchens," Harry continued thoughtfully, "the house-elves would be able to bring the supplies directly here. I think. At least, it was a house-elf that showed _me_ this place, so I think it would be reasonable."

"You mean we're stuck here with Lupin, Potter, _and_ Black for a whole week?" Severus interrupted angrily.

"Yeah, something like that," Harry said absently. Neither James not Sirius looked pleased with this fact. Severus was seething.

"But I don't know how to get to the kitchens, Evan," Lily protested, "Is it even allowed?"

"Sure it's allowed," James protested, "If you can find it." He then proceeded to give her instructions, pleased that he had a chance to show off his knowledge of the castle, especially to Lily.

"How long is it until the full moon?"

"Five days," five voices replied at the same time. Remus, James, Severus, Lily, and Remus looked at each other suspiciously and then at Evan, who had asked the question.

"Oh damn, that means my potion's going to be ruined," he sighed, "Oh, well, I'll just do it some other time." He checked his watch, "Lunch break's over, by the way, Lily. You'd better get to class and make some excuses for us. See you later!" He called to her retreating back after she had said some quick 'good-bye's. Sirius had tried to get through the door that Lily used to leave but couldn't so he wandered back to his friend and flopped onto a random mattress gloomily.

"There is no potion," Severus said flatly.

"Yes there is," Harry protested.

"Not that I know of."

"I'm brewing it in my trunk."

"Your trunk does not have any secret compartments and, even if it did, why would you brew a potion in your trunk, where the magic could affect it, if you could just as easily find a perfectly good room somewhere in the dungeons?"

"I wanted to," Evan said crossly. In fact, he was brewing a potion in his trunk that probably would be ruined…in his own time. He knew that trying a potion of its nature in a magical room was disastrous but he could hardly just make it out in the open and pretend it was his potions' homework, as he might have been able to do at the Dursleys. For one thing, the poison was way above his level _and_ highly dangerous (so it was something that probably wouldn't be taught at Hogwarts) and, for another, he had a fellow classmate, possibly even the second (now third) best in his year sleeping in the same room as him in a house that belonged to a potions' _master_. Yes, he knew of some secret passageways but it was a highly violate potion anyways and he didn't want to harm the old house. And it had nothing to do with the moon cycle but he had never said that it did.

"You know about Remus," James stated flatly.

"I know some things about him, yes," Harry said, internally smirking. Who did James think he was talking to, a Gryffindor? _Don't answer that,_ he snapped before his mind could make a sarcastic comment out of it, "He's got light brown hair and amber eyes, is a slight chocolate addict, a Gryffindor, one of the Marauders…"

"You know what he meant!" Sirius interrupted.

"I'm not quite sure what you're talking about," Harry answered evenly.

"But you do have an idea?" Remus asked quietly, before the other Gryffindors resorted to physical violence.

"Aw, Remmy, you ruined my fun with the Gryffies," Evan pouted, "Fine, fine, yes, I might have an idea what sort of secret you're talking about. But," he added, "I'm still not going to say it."

"Which means he doesn't know," Sirius supplied.

"Maybe I does and maybe I don'ts," Evan replied in the sing-song tone that house-elves usually used and stuck his tongue out at the Marauders. Sirius growled at him.

"Sirius," Remus sighed, "Don't attack Evan. And Evan, don't provoke Sirius. As you know or at least have guessed, I'm keeping a secret from you." He took a deep breath, opened his mouth, closed it, took another deep breath and said, "I'm a werewolf."

"Well, I'm glad we got that cleared up, then," Evan said brightly, "Now I wonder, Hogwarts, darling, could you get me some books. And don't ask, you know _exactly_ what I want to research. You're the one who got me into this whole mess to begin with. And don't you _dare_ even _think_ about fate. It was your fault." The last part was said in a petulant tone. None of the others even bothered asking who, or what, he thought he was talking to.

"That's _it_?" Remus asked incredulously, "You just learned that I turn into a bloodthirsty monster once a month which, incidentally, happens in five days, when we'll all still be here and I could _kill_ you…" Severus personally agreed. Evan, incidentally, did not and he cut his friend off mid-rant.

"No you won't."

Remus blinked,

"Pardon?"

"You couldn't kill me if you tried," Evan stated, "I'm un-killable. Seriously." Sirius opened his mouth to say the 'No I'm Sirius' joke but then, apparently thinking it would be better not to, closed his mouth again. "Anyways, this room is built to adapt to our needs. If you don't want to kill us and we don't want to be killed, there definitely shouldn't be a problem. Or we could have you transfigure us into animals. It really doesn't matter."

"How can you just make him sound so…_harmless_?" Severus asked, annoyed at his friend's apparent disregard for danger. Then again, ever since that night, Remus had terrified him. Being attacked by a nearly full-grown werewolf did that to a person.

"I had a werewolf friend back home," Evan said slowly, "Well, not quite a friend, more of an acquaintance…he was my father's friend so…I didn't really get the chance to know him very well but he was nice. Almost got myself attacked by him once but…I was careless. Everyone got away from that unharmed, though, so it was fine."

"Fine?" Severus asked incredulously, "You call being attacked by a werewolf _fine_?"

"Not attacked by him," Evan corrected, "_Nearly_ attacked by him. He ran off after a second. I had a friend's dog with me and he was large and very protective. Anyways there was more of a distraction when my friend's pet rat freaked and ran off." He paused, "I can't _stand_ rats." The Marauders exchanged meaningful looks.

Severus wanted to argue more but hearing about his friend's life before Hogwarts was interesting to say the least. Evan had never opened up about it before.

"Now, then there was the time I was attacked by a _basilisk_," His friend continued, his eyes gleaming with mirth.

"A _basilisk_?" James shouted and everyone looked shocked.

"Just kidding, just kidding. I'm a parselmouth, remember? Most snakes wouldn't want to attack me anyways. Even a basilisk wouldn't try unless it was under the control of another parselmouth."

"That's not something to joke about," Remus said, frowning.

"But what I wouldn't give for some of that venom," Evan sighed, "It's impossible to find, even in Knockturn Alley." He glanced at the Marauders and added unconvincingly, "Not that I would know. And I heard even the shed skin's really good for battle robes. Not that I would need any. If I'd ever met one, I would ask." Maybe he could try getting some from the Serphenia of this time. If he had time he would try it.

There was an awkward silence, Evan's parseltongue abilities not yet having been discussed and then the Marauders, or the three present, started talking to each other, conveniently far away enough that it was impossible for Severus and Harry to hear.

"So," Harry said to his partner-in-crime (or at least prank wars), "You up for a game of exploding snap?"

It was another hour or two before the house-elves arrived with food (which Harry thanked them for and asked them to bring them food the next day too) and a good half-hour after that before Lily arrived and promptly began lecturing Evan again, her argument apparently fueled by the time she had had to think in class.

"So _sorry_ that I managed to get myself caught by Voldemort, mother, I'll make sure that it doesn't happen again." Evan muttered sullenly and a bit too loudly.

"_Voldemort_?" James asked, all of his distrust towards the Slytherin rushing back, "What were you doing with him?"

"We just chatted about ruling the world and killing off all muggles over a nice game of gobstones. His house elves make some wonderful tea."

"I thought it was a family emergency?"

"Oh, didn't I tell you? He's my mother's second cousin's great-aunt's husband's niece's adopted son's childhood playmate."

James looked shocked,

"You're joking."

"Yes, I am," Harry said, "His house elves make absolutely nasty tea. But something to drink does sound nice." And a cup of hot chocolate appeared in front of him, "Oh that looks wonderful."

"Evan," Lily said calmly, as Harry drank the hot chocolate, "What were you doing with Voldemort?"

"Just a little bit of torture. Don't worry," He added at Lily's shocked expression, "I was the one being tortured and he didn't even hurt very much. Had some weird idea that I would be of some use to him as a servant, since I'm a Parselmouth. Pretty soon he'll realize that another Parselmouth would probably be a threat and come to eliminate me. But don't worry," he took another sip, "I'll probably be gone by then."

"Gone?" Severus asked, surprised and perhaps even a bit betrayed by this new information.

"Yes," Harry paused and some whipped cream appeared in his drink, "I've done the calculations and I've got a month left to live…" he paused and drank another sip, "in the Slytherin dorms. Then I'm packing up and I've gotta go. Family reasons."

"That's the excuse that you gave when you were captured by Voldemort," Severus said flatly.

"Yes, but I could be talking about the same family reasons or different ones. Did you know that Salazar Slytherin was distantly related to Godric Gryffindor?" The Gryffindors blinked and shook their heads. "And Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy are also distantly related. Don't you find that strange?"

"Who are Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy?" Severus asked.

"Nobody," he laughed, "It's really Harry Malfoy and Draco Potter. And they don't exist."

The others were giving him strange looks. He smirked at them. Lily hit him with a pillow.

And of course that meant war.

Nearly an hour and approximately four hundred pillows later (courtesy the Room of Requirements), five pillow-forts had been made, three had been invaded, two had been attacked and raided until there was not a bit of white fluff left, and a sneaky spell (courtesy of one Evan Harrison) left all of the occupants but himself and Severus violently allergic to feathers (though the spell did no more than make them sneeze) for about ten minutes, during which the pillows rapidly disappeared one-by-one (as Evan and Severus were doing their best to stop the pillows from disappearing). In the end, all six of them were lying on the floor (now conveniently made of springy mattresses) breathing heavily from the sneezing, thinking, and pillow-whacking.

It was an hour well-spent.

Eventually Lily had to leave to study, after many attempts to do so in the prankster-packed room, and the two Slytherins were lounging on a pillow/mattress castle reading a book on time travel (Evan) and potions (Severus). The marauders were bored. And bored pranksters could be dangerous. Just because pranks were funnier and more embarrassing in front of large audiences didn't mean that they always had to be played in public. Especially if the pranked party were pranksters themselves. And both sides were equipped with cameras (transfigured from whatever they happened to have in their pockets, instead of supplied by the room, so that they would last). Remus had tried to sit to the side and study but was dragged into it anyways.

When Severus tried to ask Evan about a potion that seemed to be misnamed or, at least, wildly misspelled, it came out as a mewing noise. Evan raised his eyebrow. Severus did not try to say anything else but silently pointed out the mistake in the book and Evan wrote down that he thought that it was supposed to be a Babbling Beverage, rather than a Beautification Potion. Severus roared randomly which made them both jump before glaring over at the Marauders.

Sirius immediately fell in love with a mirror, babbling at it how much he loved 'her' and the snitch James had been playing with exploded into silver and green paint, leaving Remus to clean up the mess as James tried to wipe his face off. Severus gave Evan an amused look and Evan wrote that it was Severus's turn to prank next if the Marauders chose to retaliate. Severus started thinking of ideas.

Evan was not overly surprised when he started humming a random song,

"But I don't even _know_ this song," he complained. Or, at least, tried to complain. It came out gibberish: "this but I song _know_ even don't!"

"Tahw?" Snape, too, seemed to be having language problems. Narrowing his eyes angrily at the Marauders, he tried to say something else, "Siht si llesp epyt tahw?"

"I hell know if," Evan said, smirking at him, he, at least, seemed to understand the spell cast on his pranking partner, "Prank badly. Them please."

Severus gave him a blank look, still not understanding what he himself was saying,

"Ti teg t'nod I."

"From it learn cousin my," Evan said, "Of sort. Writing try." At least Evan was easier to understand, just a little scrambled up. He tried writing 'Will this really help?' and it came out 'Pleh yllaer siht lliw?' After staring blankly at the words for a minute, he tried writing 'Pleh yllaer siht lliw?' and it came out 'Will this really help?' The words were backwards. And if he tried to say them backwards it should come out English, albeit with a horrible accent. But accent didn't matter as much as many wizards thought it did, intention and confidence enough should make it come out at least half-right. And he didn't really care if his spell ended up strange, as long as it didn't backfire and that would only be with a broken wand.

He would get the Marauders back for this.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Harry's 'confused' lines are:

"But I don't even know this song!"

"Hell if I know." "Please prank them. Badly."

"Learnt it from my cousin." "Sort of. Try writing"

And Severus's 'backwards' lines are:

"What?" "What type of spell is this?"

"I don't get it"

'Will this really help?'

'Pleh yllaer siht lliw?'

Hope you liked it! More soon but not for at least another day, since I'm not going to be able to touch my computer tomorrow.

Also, some of you might think (I sure did) that Evan/Harry/Salazar was behaving a bit…Gryffindor…in this chapter. Well, there is the chapter title and…Notice that he did not once get questioned about his parseltongue abilities. Instead, he steered the conversations towards pranks and such while maintaining a silly attitude.

Please review!


	17. Halloween Departure

This is a long chapter, or it wouldn't have taken so long. It covers a lot, too. I feel pretty miserable too, the overall mood of this chapter is _not_ happy. _This_ is why I felt I needed a break and wrote the previous chapter how I did. Even though the beginning starts out pretty light…Well, you have been warned. It might not be as bad as I'm making it out to be but, hey, I'm the one who's writing this, so I have to put myself in the middle of all these emotions. Actually, when I went back through it, it wasn't so bad. I'm just tired.

But I did have fun and I hope you all enjoy it. An update is an update, after all.

And there's a…thing…at the end. A short, mostly unrelated story. That's iffy. But it popped into my head somewhere near one in the morning and I spent maybe half an hour on it. It had to go somewhere so…

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Seventeen: Halloween Departure**

"And so then Sirius's mum started _screeching_ at us so he told her to…" James told the group in front of him to varying degrees of laughter. Sirius, never growing tired of this particular story laughed the loudest, though Evan was a close second. Remus and Severus were laughing politely, Remus having heard this story several times before and Severus still waiting for someone to yell at him for it. Or, alternatively, inform him that he was dreaming. He hoped someone would wake him up soon.

The two groups had spent all night pranking each other until they eventually ran out of ideas and fell asleep from either boredom or magical exhaustion. In the morning they had woken up, both sides clearly expecting to pick up from the point they had fallen asleep at. However, taking a good look at themselves and then each other and remembering the steadily worsening stream of pranks that they had to resort to as ideas ran low, they simply burst out laughing. Nobody was quite sure who started it but Severus believed wholeheartedly that it was Evan that had been the first to laugh and so causing what little restraint the others had had over their laughter to break.

And then they had sat down together to eat breakfast. James and Sirius had started swapping stories with Evan (the Gryffindors at least possessing enough tact to leave out the stories that included Severus) and Remus sat off to the side listening to it all calmly. Severus felt disorientated, as if he had just stepped into the Gryffindor common room when expecting to find the Slytherin one. Then again, having lived in the same school as the Marauders for over five years, such a thing wouldn't confuse him as badly as this. He had never seen Evan acting so Gryffindor (not that it was a bad thing at this level of Gryffindorness, just…different) and he had never seen the Marauders acting so…Well, human. No bullying, no pranking, no outrageous Gryffindor heroics. They were just…chatting.

He _really_ hoped that he would wake up soon.

Remus looked like he was about to try and say something to Severus several times but hesitated or was cut off by one of the others saying something to him. And Severus made sure to show that he was not interested in discussion with the werewolf. James, Sirius, and Evan chatted on.

Then everyone was finished with their breakfast, the house-elves came and brought it away, and everyone got up, clearly intending to head back to their own sides of the room to resume the prank war. Evan stretched and walked out of the room, a door materializing in the stone, the fact that he was still cheerfully sporting gold eyes, red-streaked-gold hair, _and_ Gryffindor robes with three paw prints plus a hoof print and 'I love the Marauders' on the back, not to mention the black lion's mane and antlers not seeming to phase him.

The Marauders stared after him with a blend of shock and annoyance on their faces. Severus blinked, shrugged, and followed his friend out of the room, similarly clothed though with dog ears instead of the antlers and no mane. The Marauders continued staring, opened-mouthed, for a good minute and then ran towards the door and exited after the Slytherins.

The Slytherins were gone. The Gryffindors looked at each other, decided that it was pointless to ask, and headed off to find Lily and tell her of their 'escape', Evan's permanent-marker doodling on their faces (he had done them by hand once all the Marauders had fallen asleep) as well as various other Slytherin-related cloths and hair/eye/skin colors were simply ignored (or, more likely, forgotten).

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Well?" Severus asked once his friend exited the Headmaster's office.

"I told him I was back, told him what I told you what I'd been doing, told him I'd been delayed by Lily, apologized, and he told me I could 'run off and join my friend,'" Evan looked annoyed, "I've got to find whatever charm he's using to see who's waiting outside his office and destroy it."

"That's it?" Severus asked, "You just told him that it was a 'family emergency'?"

"Well, no, I might have embellished my story a little bit," Evan hedged, "Actually, I was very upset to 'discover' that I'm a parseltongue so I went to visit my remaining relatives to learn the details of my family's past. Those who I found were just as shocked as I was so once I graduate I'll set off to find what remains of the other half of my family on some big and noble Gryffindor quest-type-thing."

"Once you graduate?" Severus asked, "I thought you were leaving in a month?"

"Oh, I am, but if I said _that_ he would think he didn't have much time to convince me otherwise. He would want me where he could see me, you see, since I'm a parselmouth and all and possibly a valuable weapon against Voldemort. He wouldn't be able to stop me (even _I_ won't be able to prevent my departure) but he could hinder my plans for the next month."

"Where are you going?" Severus asked, seeing an opportunity to inquire about something that his friend had been less than forthcoming about.

"Even I'm not sure about that," Evan said evasively, "All I know is that it might take a very, very long time to come back here. But I'll eventually be able to see you again."

"And will I be able to see you?" Severus asked.

Evan hesitated,

"If you want to I think that you might be able to, eventually."

Severus raised an eyebrow at his friend. What was that supposed to mean?

His friend refused to answer any questions after that.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Time flew by all too quickly after that. Evan seemed to be always busy doing things that usually didn't involve schoolwork and often didn't involve Severus. For one thing, Severus had seen Evan talk to several people (mostly Slytherins) that he was sure were Death Eaters. Not anyone as obvious as Lucius Malfoy and Bellatrix Black but the quieter ones and even Crabbe and Goyle. Sometimes he came back looking upset or angry and other times he was practically glowing. Severus had yet to have an opportunity to spy on one of these meetings. Most of the time when he wasn't doing that the Slytherin-Gryffindor was in the library reading ancient-looking books (some of which _had_ to have come from the restricted section of the library, if only for their rarity) with titles that were always conveniently covered by Evan's hand.

Evan had also taken it upon himself to teach Severus several things which Severus was not sure he even wanted to know how his friend knew. Occlumency, for one, as well as very, very good acting practice for both Voldemort and Dumbledore (how Evan had known about the whole double-crossing mess he had gotten himself into, Severus didn't know as he hadn't told his friend), and even how to temporarily block the pain in his dark mark as well as some handy-spells, such as one used for group-apparition. Basic fighting skills were also covered and also (once Severus had revealed that he could understand parseltongue, much to Evan's surprise and delight) the basics of parseltongue magics with practice speaking it.

And still the days continued to fly by.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Severus watched his friend leave the room silently yet again, an action that had become disturbingly familiar over the past couple of weeks. He could feel Hogwarts tremble with worry and a small, black shape leapt up besides him on the bed and curled up, giving off such a strong nervous tension that it made Severus himself edgy.

Finally deciding that he couldn't just do _nothing_, he left the room silently after Evan. Hogwarts and Evan's cat guided him into a small room between the second and third-year dormitories that must have, at one point, been a passageway. His friend had cleaned it up, however, so that it was just an empty room filled with some random odds and ends. A cauldron, some potions ingredients, and a handful of small things that Severus couldn't identify sat in the room, as well as Evan, who was sitting in the middle of all the random items.

"Serphenia doesn't like that, you know…" Severus stated uncertainly as his friend cut himself with a dagger that Severus had never seen before. Evan looked up at him with blank eyes, unmindful to the blood dripping down his arm and onto the stone floor. Severus flinched. He had no experience dealing with this kind of thing; what could _he_ do?

"Sev?" Evan asked blinking, "Oh." Severus's words finally seemed to sink in. "You've been talking to her, then."

"I don't like it either," Severus offered, not really sure what to say.

Evan didn't say anything. Severus felt like screaming in frustration. Why did _he_ have to deal with this? Why not some Gryffindor with their heroic and inspiring words? Well, he was Evan's friend so he would just have to do it himself. He wouldn't leave his friend to work things out himself.

"They're all gone, you know," Evan said serenely, "All my friends and family I've talked about. They've betrayed me or I've betrayed them. Or they're dead," he added as an afterthought, "Or both, I suppose. Now has that ever happened, I wonder. Have I killed a betrayer? The rat deserved to die but no, I didn't kill him; I didn't even let him be killed. He's still out there, though I should have killed the traitor when I had the chance. And then that time I deserved to be banished and I never saw them again, so no, as far as I know I didn't kill _them_. My parents were killed protecting me. Oh, no, I did kill my father, didn't I. But then he never loved me, he loved my mother and he killed her. It wasn't as if mother paid attention to me, I got more attention out of her old portrait than her and it was an accident that my father died. He would have killed me anyways…"

Severus's breath had caught in his throat during his friend's calm statements. Merlin, no wonder Evan was a little messed up. What would he have been able to do in his friend's place? Nothing at all, he probably would have allowed himself to be killed ages ago.

Gathering his courage he told his friend hesitantly,

"I won't abandon you or betray you."

Evan looked _at_ him, really at him, for the first time in this conversation,

"Don't make promises you can't keep," he told his friend simply. And, standing, walked past his friend out of the room after dabbing some potion from the cauldron on his wound, causing them to seal and disappear as if they had never been there. The cat, Serphenia or, as he was calling her, Bast, followed behind him.

Severus frowned and turned to look after his friend,

"I won't! I mean it!"

And then he saw the two long daggers that his friend had left by his feet.

What did it mean, Severus wondered as he got back into bed after hesitantly claiming the daggers and stashing him in the hidden compartment of his own trunk (for what good Slytherin with money didn't have at least one?). Did his friend trust him? Was Evan merely testing him in some way? It was all very confusing and he was not yet ready to untangle the web of half-truths that was his only friend.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"May I speak to you for a moment?"

The four Marauders looked up at Evan, three of them still wearing the permanent marker doodles on their faces.

"Uh, only Remus and Si-Black," Evan said, rethinking his earlier sentence.

"Why?" Pettegrew asked distrustfully.

Evan smiled at him cheerfully but there was something…off about that smile,

"Don't worry; you'll get them back in one piece…At least, I'm pretty sure. I only need those two and it won't take _too_ long…" He looked towards James expectantly. James shrugged and glanced at Remus and Sirius, who also shrugged.

"Okay," he finally decided and before he could blink the Slytherin had dragged his friends down the corridor and out of site. He looked bemusedly after them before shrugging and turning to Peter who looked completely lost. Taking pity on his friend, who had missed the pranksters' last confrontation, James started explaining to his friend.

Down the hall and nearly out of earshot Evan finally slowed down.

"Uh, Evan?" Remus asked, not quite used to being dragged around in such a manner, "Is there something you wanted to talk to us about?"

The Slytherin-Gryffindor turned to face the two Marauders, emerald eyes sparkling with mischief, and made a shushing motion. The perplexed Marauders looked at him and then each other, wondering why they had agreed to come with the strange prankster as Evan touched the wall yet again. A hissed code later and there was a passageway where both Marauders were positive there hadn't been one before. They blinked and before they even had a chance to look at each other again they were pushed through.

"Hey!" Sirius protested as he stumbled, almost crashing into Severus, who had been waiting for Evan.

"Did you _have_ to bring them?" Was the Slytherin's only comment.

"'Course I did," Evan said, smiling cheerfully, which the Marauders decided he'd been doing _way_ too much today. Smiling even wider, he dumped several scrolls on the desk in the middle of the room. Speaking of which…

"Where _are_ we?" Sirius asked, annoyed that a 'first year' had found so many passages that the Marauders knew nothing about.

"It's a secret," Harry said absent-mindedly as he poked through the scrolls, making sure that everything was there, "But, if you must know, all sorts of passageways open up to you at Hogwarts if you're a parselmouth."

Remus was the first to make the connection, having already made it previously,

"Salazar Slytherin."

Evan grinned at him, though there was a slightly odd light in his eyes,

"Bingo. Salazar Slytherin was also a parselmouth and so made all sorts of handy shortcuts. Well anyways," He continued, before Sirius could say anything along the lines of 'Slytherins are evil', "Me and Sev need your help on a school-wide prank."

"Why us?" Sirius asked at the same time as Remus said, "When?"

"To answer Black's question first, I don't want to work with Pettegrew. I'm really sorry, I know he's your friend and all and I'm really trying to get to know him," a lie, "But I don't think I could stand working with him for very long. And I can't invite James, since this prank partially involves him. But not in a bad way," he said hastily at the looks on the Marauder's faces, "I'm pretty sure that he'll appreciate it once it's all over and done.

"As for Remus's question…It needs to be set up and prepared to be set off by Halloween. Yes, I know that it's in five days, which is a really short amount of preparation time for a school-wide prank on the scale that I want it but Halloween is Halloween, and, since I'll probably be gone before then, probably more like within the next couple days so it might be impossible…or it might not be.

"The prank is this: a school-wide Halloween prank lasting all day with a Halloween ball until midnight (for the older years, the younger students will have to go to sleep by then) to finish it off at which point all the spells and disguises will be taken away. The objective is: set up James and Lily to go together for the Halloween ball without making it too obvious and without letting Lily think that James set it up that way."

"Why?" Remus asked surprised, while Sirius was too shocked to say anything.

Evan shrugged,

"I feel like it. Call it a going-away prank."

"We're setting all this up on the random whims of a Slytherin with nothing to lose, you mean," Severus said for the Gryffindors' benefit.

"Yeah, pretty much," Evan said, grinning and not seeming overly troubled.

"Sounds fun," Sirius said, grinning. Severus refrained from making a comment about Gryffindors, "We're in need of a good challenge. What do you think, Remus?"

"We _are_ Marauders, aren't we?" Remus was also smiling, "What are those?" He asked pointing at the scrolls that Evan had gathered on the table.

"From the restricted section, so don't tell," Evan said, unrolling one and spreading it out, "Maps and plans of Hogwarts, courtesy Rowena Ravenclaw herself. Perfectly preserved by librarians and just waiting for the next generation of pranksters to get a hold of them (I'll return them when we're done). When I said it would be school-wide, I _meant_ school-wide. We're not going to leave one common room, empty corridor, or wardrobe un-changed. So, Marauders and Pranksters, up to the challenge?"

"Definitely!" Sirius cheered enthusiastically as Remus and Severus nodded.

"Now, first thing's first, we need to give _everyone_ costumes. Should we design them ourselves, let the students' subconscious' choose? Or should we inform them ahead of time that there will be a costume party and that they have five days to prepare a costume or else? If we do that, we can work with the teachers and we won't have to strip whatever spells they already have in place…"

Four days of working in secret later (oh, the others _knew_ that the four of them, or, at least, Evan and the two Marauders, were up to _something_ but they had no idea as to what it was; they had chosen to solve their problem by mentioning it 'secretly' somewhere where they knew Dumbledore was listening and being suitably 'shocked' when Dumbledore announced a Halloween Ball with costumes to be ready by the morning of the day) and everything was almost complete. Any and all decorative spells by the teachers were stripped off by Harry and temporarily blocked any others; replaced by Harry and the Marauders' own decoration spells (actually nice; it was a prank but not a _prank_) to appear on the morning of Halloween. A mask of some sort was required for all the costumes and the four of them had spent the previous night each in separate Houses, spelling masks so that they would hide the identity of the wearer completely and not come off until midnight. Remus and Sirius had promised to take care of all last-minute shoppers' masks, as well as clothing if they forgot to make, magic, or buy a costume before the morning of the Ball.

Harry could feel the magic twist and shift back into place throughout that today and it was clear to him that it was the day that he would be forced to leave to his own time. He made it perfectly clear to the others.

"I'm going to leave today," he stated calmly.

"What, today?" Sirius asked surprised.

"That's what he just said, Black," Severus said in a slightly annoyed but mostly bored tone of voice. Inside, however, he wholeheartedly agreed with Sirius.

"I'll go around midnight. You won't be able to see me off," Harry continued, "But for now let's just get this prank set up, okay? Then we can cry and blubber and do whatever else Gryffindors do when saying goodbye and I can spend the rest of the day wrapping up everything I need done."

The rest of the morning was spent quietly, everyone's mood rather upset by the news. Evan and Sirius, at least, tried to keep the atmosphere between everyone cheerful despite their own gloominess. All too soon the spells were all in place, double and triple-checked until at last there were no excuses to stay any longer.

"Why don't you go ahead, Severus," Evan suggested finally, "Let us have a Gryffie moment. I'll see you tonight when I'm finished with everything else. There should be at least an hour or two to talk before I'm forced to leave."

Severus shrugged and left the room. Evan turned to the Gryffindors,

"I'm _really_ sorry that I just have to leave like this," He started, "Thank you for being so great to me for all this time."

Sirius gave a bitter laugh,

"Not all the time. I barely talked to you at first and that was all insults."

"I'm used to it," Evan said, smiling, "I get some of my best friends that way. I'm not really one for first impressions either." He sighed, "I'm really going to miss you all."

"Tell us why you have to leave," Remus urged, "Maybe we can help you."

"No, no one could help me with this. And besides, I have someone at home I need to confront. Two someones, actually, if I live through the first encounter. It all matters whether or not I get back before midnight, I guess."

"I thought you were leaving at midnight?" Remus asked.

"It's not going to take any time to get there. Call it apparation if it makes things simpler." Apparation through time, that is.

"Well," Sirius started sounding not-quite tearful but definitely not calm, "We're all going to miss you, too, Evan."

Harry smiled at them,

"Thanks, Sirius." It was the first time that he had called Sirius by is first name and it caught the Marauders a bit off guard. He turned to Remus, "I will return, though it won't be for several years. If you could see me, would you like me to approach you?"

"Of course!" Remus said.

"No matter what?" Evan asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Yes."

"I'll try, then," Evan said.

"What about me?" Sirius asked.

"I can't."

"What?" Sirius asked, finding this extremely unfair, as he should, "Why not?"

"I just can't. Please understand that I'm not choosing Remus over you but there are certain people to whom I'll have to say my final goodbyes to today."

"I don't get it," Sirius said sullenly, "But if there's really no choice…" And suddenly he realized how upset Evan looked, "Hey, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Evan said, smiling sadly, "I just wish that I could see you again…You know, when I get back. Well, I wish the two of you the best of luck with your lives," One would be betrayed and thrown into Azkaban, the other, betrayed by all his friends but one who he could no longer see, thrown out on the streets by the ministry so that he could not take custody of little Harry Potter, "I'm sorry."

"Bye, Evan," Remus said, "I hope that I can see you again and that you'll be well when we meet again." Not quite, Harry thought, smiling sadly, the first time was a Dementor attack, the second not yet happened.

"Take care of yourself," Sirius told him awkwardly, "Pull some good pranks and have a good life. We'll take care of everything here." But he wouldn't. Without his memories, he would revert back to the Sirius he had been when Evan first met him, full of petty prejudices and hate of everything Slytherin.

"Well," Harry said, taking a deep breath, "I guess this is it. Goodbye Moony, goodbye Padfoot." And he left the room. When the two Marauders exited after him, he was gone.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Lily, James!" Evan called, finally spotting his two targets (it hadn't taken that long, having been led there by the castle). James was trying to convince Lily to go with him to the Halloween Ball and Lily was refusing. Too bad that both of their efforts were useless, not that either of them knew that.

"Yes, Evan?" Lily asked, happy at the distraction.

"Can I talk to you two for a minute?"

"Okay," Lily said brightly and looked at James expectantly.

"Er…Sure."

"Thanks," Harry said brightly, though a little uncomfortable at talking to both of his parents at the same time. Hogwarts opened a passage for them in a nearby wall and Harry led them inside. The door closed behind them and he could feel Dumbledore's wards cut off as he lost track of what Evan was saying.

"Well, what'd you want to talk about?" James asked, slightly annoyed at being interrupted.

"I'm leaving today," Harry informed them both as bluntly as he had told his three partners-in-crime for the Halloween Ball Prank.

"Huh?" was James' eloquent answer.

"Already?" Lily asked, startled.

"Yeah, I'm afraid that I have to go and," he hesitated, trying to decide what to tell his future parents, "When I leave I will have to erase everyone's memories of me."

"What?" James was shocked. Lily was equally shocked, though a bit calmer about it. She stared at Evan wide-eyed.

"Why?" was her only question.

"It would be dangerous to all of you _and_ me. There are some weird things happening with the magic here, memories of me could do more harm than any of us can risk. I'm really sorry."

"You have no choice?" She asked, trying out the words, wondering whether it was worth it to get really angry. She just felt…tired, drained. Evan was…leaving? He was stealing her memories of him as he left?

"I'm really sorry," Evan repeated, not looking at her, "I know I can't ask you to understand but…please forgive me eventually."

"Forgive you?" Lily asked hollowly, "How are we supposed to forgive you if we don't remember you?"

Evan looked up and she saw raw pain in his emerald eyes. She looked away.

"I don't know if I can," Lily said slowly, "If you gave me time, I'd try but…There is no time."

"I…Don't know what you have to do," James said, "I don't know why you'd have to take our memories but I think we'd be better off knowing. I don't care about the dangers."

"That's impossible," Harry stated flatly, "If I leave you with the memories, the magic might do it on its own and that's irreversible and much less delicate. I'm sorry. You all mean the world to me; you're my friends but…I can't risk it. Not again. Just…be happy, live your life, and forget about me."

"I can't say I understand," James said softly, "But I think I do, in a way. I can't say I forgive you, but I think I already have in a way."

"Thank you," Harry said.

"If there's nothing I can do to change your mind…" Lily said, "I don't want to forget anything. But…Just be careful, Evan. With the rest of _your_ life."

"Thanks, Lily, James," Harry said quietly. Mom, dad, "Be happy, please."

_Until you die._

And he left.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Harry arrived back in the Slytherin Dormitories quite some time later, where Severus was waiting for him. His bag had already been packed, had been for weeks. He just had to wait.

He sat on his bed, holding his trunk. Hopefully it would make the jump through time with him and if not…Well, that was just a couple old spell books. But there were some things that still held memories…Maybe it would be somewhere at Hogwarts when he returned. If he ever returned to Hogwarts. Severus was sitting on his own bed, across from him. Well, it was now or never.

"I'm…not from this time," Harry confessed. Today seemed to be his day for Gryffindor straightforwardness. Well, he wasn't sure how he'd get around to telling everyone he'd be leaving without it.

Severus blinked,

"What do you mean?"

"I'm from the future," He fought down the urge to twitch or pace or any other nervous motion, "Actually, I don't know what time I'm from," he said bitterly, "But I'll have to return to the future soon. And…I can't afford for this past to interfere with the future. It would cause a paradox. Hogwarts can help me a little, make sure I don't show up in records and such, but there are _people_ I know in the future…including you. And you definitely don't know me as Evan Harrison then. So…You have to forget."

"Forget?" Severus asked, feeling strangely numb.

"Before I go…Everyone has to forget that Evan Harrison ever existed. It also includes taking away most of the skills that I taught you over the past month. But if you're ever in danger…well, about to die, more like, you'll be able to access any or all of the abilities that might save your life."

There was a long silence, stretching for what seemed to be eternity.

"What am I like in the future?" Severus asked hesitantly.

Harry smiled sadly,

"You're the potion master of Hogwarts and Head of Slytherin House. All the Gryffindors are scared of you. The Slytherins admire you." There was something odd about his tone of voice. Severus thought about what Evan had just said…Surely Evan had been a Slytherin…But something told him that his assumption was incorrect.

"You're a Gryffindor," Severus accused.

His friend's answering smile was not a happy one,

"I was for a time. For that time. But then, before, after, I was a Slytherin."

Severus was confused,

"After or before?"

"Both. Neither. I don't know."

"But you're from the future."

"In a manner of speaking. Yes. Mostly."

This conversation was making less and less sense to Severus,

"I don't want you to go."

"I don't want to go; but some things are inevitable and the magic will send me whether I like it or not. I'm…not in my time. I need to go back."

"I…You can erase my memories if you have to," Severus said quietly.

"Thank you," Harry said, "But here's the thing. I can give you your memories back when I return to my time; I have the power to do that. But maybe it would be better if I didn't. You wouldn't like it."

"I don't care if you're a Gryffindor," Severus said, stubbornly, "I don't care if I hate Gryffindors. I don't want to hate you. Please…Can you…When you get back…"

"It's not just that," Harry said, frowning, "Getting a large amount of suppressed memories can seriously mess you up. Trust me, I would know. And it's _years_ from now. Many, many, many, many years. It'll be practically a different life and memories of your old one might not be welcome."

"I'd still want to know," Severus insisted

"If that's what you really want."

"It is." There was another silence, "You said I didn't know you as Evan Harrison. What did I know you as?"

"I was known as a lot of things," Harry said, _Boy, Gryffindor, golden boy, Potter, Boy-Who-Lived…_ "My friends knew me as Harry." What friends?

"Just Harry?"

Harry smiled bitterly,

"Just Harry." _I wish…_ "Oh…Here." Harry tossed Sev a small box, "Since I'm not going to…be here for Christmas…"

Glancing curiously at his friend, he pulled off the golden bow and tore off the green wrapping paper. Inside was a box. Inside the box was a strange pendant, a tiny silver serpent wrapped around a small stone that was changing colors rapidly.

"The stone will keep you safe from most spells and potions as long as you have it with you," Harry explained, "The snake is Serphenia." Severus looked up at his friend in shock. "She and I both talked and we decided that this was best. We both want you to be safe, Sev. You won't be able to understand her, since I'll be locking away your parseltongue abilities but sometimes if you're in trouble she'll be able to whisper advice to you."

"Evan…Harry…I can't take this," Severus said, "Serphenia…she's your familiar, isn't she?"

"Yes, I think. Yes." Severus raised an eyebrow at that. How could you _think_ that someone was your familiar but not be sure? "Just keep her and be safe." Evan did not allow Severus any time to answer. "Now, there are other things to talk about…"

"Harry…" Severus said when everything was done, "Thank you."

Harry gave him an odd smile from across the room and cast the spell. And then the last of the magic snapped back into place. There was no vortex of magic and wind this time, no uproar, no disturbance. He was just there and then he…wasn't. As if the rubber band had flung him back to his time faster than the eye could see.

Severus Snape was left staring at the vacated bed in front of him, the bed that had always been empty yet looked strangely messy, as if someone had been sleeping in it or sitting on it just recently. He stared bemusedly down at the letter that he was holding in one hand and the strange (and perhaps gaudy) pendant that was clutched in his other hand. The ribbon, torn wrapping paper, and small box that lay next to him on his bed indicated that it was a present recently opened but he had no idea of any such event occurring

How strange.

He looked at the letter.

_Dear future me_, it said and Severus raised an eyebrow,

_Yes, I admit this is a bit strange but believe it or not, this is your…past self. As of probably about two minutes ago. Yes, yes, I know, but hear me out. I…we…met an extraordinary person lately, and he was…is…from the future. He's been here for a couple months but now has to return to his own time, taking our memories of him with him so that he doesn't cause a paradox. His name, as of his stay here, is Evan Harrison and I'm not allowed to say anything else that might allow you to guess his identity. That's why I'm writing this, so that you won't be able to recognize his handwriting and, anyway, you're more likely to believe yourself than some random stranger that you have no memory of meeting. _

_Evan was…is…our friend. He really was. Believe me when I say that he made our life a lot better in the past few months. The pendant is a gift from him and I took more from him than you know, can even imagine, by accepting it. Please treat it well. _

_I know you probably can't remember more than vague images if anything at all but he offered to contact me again in the future, when he gets back. That would be you actually, to give us our memories back and make us…Me. You. Something in between. Evan says it's bound to be messy but…I want to give him a chance. _

_The instructions are simple. If you are still willing to regain your memories, attach this letter to the door of wherever you are staying (you may charm it's contents unreadable, he has other ways of telling as long as it's _this_ letter) between the 21 and 22 of August. You will have to do this every year (to prevent us from knowing around when he's from)._

_Now I'm sorry that at this point it probably sounds like a prank from the Marauders but I am sincere about this. I want to do this. It's up to you whether or not you choose to remember._

_Sincerely,_

_Severus Snape_

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Lily watched a shooting star making a desperate wish for remembrance.

And then it was all gone.

Lily looked dreamily at the sky. It was beautiful with the bright stars and the moon…spreading out forever…She shivered. It was chilly outside. And what was she doing out here in the first place? The Halloween Ball was tomorrow and, though she still wasn't sure she wanted to participate, it _was_ a school day too and currently it was rather late.

She went inside.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

(Short (?) extra, mostly or all unrelated to the plot)

_Summary: Lily's diary to her future self; begins with her feelings about Evan disappearing and not even remembering the fact (but that ends as soon as she descends the stairs). It is, scarily enough, a romance including the prank that Evan, Severus, Remus, and Sirius play for Halloween. A romance from a person who has never written romance, mostly fluff, very little plot, not graphic at all (I think). You have been warned._

From the journal of Lily Evans:

_Dear Future,_

_Today the strangest thing happened. No, several strange things. It all started with this weird Ball…No, I suppose that's not it at all. It started, I suppose, when I woke up._

_When I first woke up, I felt a deep feeling of loss, as if something very important to me had been taken away, which itself is odd, as I checked all my supplies and even wrote a letter to mother but all of my possessions remain intact except for the my favorite skirt that Petunia ruined 'accidentally' but that was weeks ago and I got over it quickly. But it was strange and I felt tired as if I had stayed up all night and my cheeks felt tear-stained as if I'd cried myself to sleep. Maybe I'd had an upsetting dream but dreams never seem to bother me and definitely not that badly. It is strange that I don't remember any of it but when I try really hard I can see green. I wonder why?_

_When I got out of bed, I found that I was in my room alone (a room with only one bed, it was getting stranger and stranger) and when I opened my wardrobe (the only wardrobe) there was nothing but the costume that I'd made for the Ball. I was so angry at myself for making the costume so flashy but, then again, I had help. One of the boys in our year helped me put it together…I don't remember his name; he must have been a Slytherin. I think it was either that or Gryffindor, which is strange, since all the male Gryffindors in our years are the Marauders and there's no way I would have let any of them near my costume. Then again, why would I let a Slytherin near my costume?_

_Anyways I tried transfiguring it into something else, the spell didn't work. I couldn't just go down in my pajamas, you must understand, I had sent all my cloths down to be washed the day previously and all I had was a shirt that Petunia gave me for my birthday that was ugly as it was enormous (and it was probably ten times as big as I am) and my underwear. I was tomato red by that point with frustration and anger but I gave into the stupid prank and got dressed in the costume._

_I suppose I'd better describe it too. I'll add a picture if I have time. I was dressed up as a phoenix; a beautiful red dress that I definitely didn't think up (it must have been my helper, whoever he was), a small golden tiara (that, once I put in on my head, arranged my hair to look fancy, though pretty, I have to admit…and I was planning to leave it out, really! I'd just put on everything else and I wanted to see how it would look like but once I put it on it wouldn't come out!), a thin, red, feathered mask with gold specks and a golden beak, gloves, and earrings (now I'm positive that I didn't put all that stuff there). Not to mention the huge red (again with gold specks) wings sticking out of the back of the dress (well, they stuck out of my back but they came with the dress) that were charmed so I could fold and unfold them at will so I wouldn't have so many problems with doorways and crowds and such. _

_But enough about the stupid costume. I went downstairs and found myself in…well, it must have been the Gryffindor Common Room, but it sure didn't look like it. Other people were waking up too, wearing similarly-color-themed outfits. I later found out that people were placed in different houses according to what color outfits they were wearing (in other words, mostly randomly) to disorient them. Getting more and more confused and annoyed, I mad my way down to the Great Hall (the most direct way was marked for the non-Gryffindors that otherwise might not have been able to find their common rooms). The tables had been rearranged (well, just turned sideways so that everyone was a bit confused) and decorated, as was everything that I'd seen so far, including the room I'd woken up in. A large sign hanging above the teacher's table invited everyone to sit down at whatever table they wanted. Modified class schedules were distributed by what must have been house-elves, though all of those wore costumes too (they must have been illusions, as they were all still bound to Hogwarts). _

_I chatted with a nice girl that was costumed as a witch (an improved muggle's version, it was cute) during breakfast and we headed off towards our new first classes. Classes were…different that day. We all went to classes in a different order and with different people than previously to make sure that we couldn't identify each other, all in the same grade as us but completely disregarding the different Houses. I actually met a lot of new people (it was nice, whoever thought of this was obviously past inter-House boundaries and it was a really good idea) that I didn't know and still don't know. I had four classes with a nice boy in my year dressed as a dragon, with scaly blue-green wings and a matching mask. He even had a spiked tale, which he seemed less-than-amused at and which I thought was hilarious. Mr. Dragon (for the spell on our masks prevented us from giving names that were too revealing of our identities and he couldn't think of any others; he called me Ms Phoenix, too) told me that his friends helped him with most of his costume, as he was too busy trying to ask a girl out to the ball (but, alas, even if she had agreed he wouldn't have been able to find her) so maybe his friend was the Slytherin that helped me with my costume? What a lucky coincidence, I thought, since we did seem to match. He did look around an awful lot, though, as if hoping to catch site of his crush but he really had no chance; the spells were done very well. We sat together after the first class and we eventually ended up going to the Ball together._

_The Ball…Now that was something else. Gone were the bright decorations that had lasted during the day (they had seemed almost muggle but less cheap plastic and more nice gold goblets and such), now there was an eerie atmosphere of mist, cobwebs, and darkness. When you looked outside, there were hundreds of jack-o-lanterns (courtesy a couple busy charms classes) spaced out among paths that led through what seemed to be the forbidden forest but closer and a little less dangerous. There was also a haunted house, which I thought was rather odd, but the designer seemed to know a bit about muggles. Some girls took advantage of the creepy darkness to get closer to their dancing partners, claiming 'fright'. _

_I didn't approve, so I led Mr. Dragon over to the snacks table and then Mr. Dragon invited me to a dance, as a friend, and we had a blast. I didn't know much formal dancing, so we mostly made fun of the snobbish purebloods. Then we went through the haunted house, which Mr. Dragon found hilarious, and, in the back, we found an inflatable slide, definitely muggle with a few magical improvements. I was, to say the least, a bit shocked, but had a go at it (there were charms on it so it was okay to go with nice clothing, jewelry, and skirts, and nothing would get lost or rumpled and nobody would get embarrassed. It was fun. Mr. Dragon and I were fast becoming good friends and I was got from so many turns running around the slide so we took a walk in the forest, enjoying the spooky mist and strange light and apparitions in the forest. I was getting tired, so Mr. Dragon carried me, yes, carried me back to the castle through a passageway that I didn't know of and up to some deserted little battlement-type tower not far from the ground or the Great Hall (it was nice, not so high as some of the Astronomy towers; and no it was not the Astronomy Tower) and went to get me some snacks and something to drink. _

_I sat up on the thick ledge where he had put me down (and he was nice about it and all, made sure I wasn't afraid of heights or anything) until he came back with food and drinks for us. We ate, talked some more and had a nice time. We were both getting a bit tired, so it must have been late. I was staring at the sky and thinking and suddenly remembered finding myself out on one of these towers the night before without any memory of how I'd gotten there. This was really strange, because I didn't remember that before and I shivered. Mr. Dragon saw, well felt (we were sitting close together, it was cold and we were friends, we weren't sitting that close together), me shiver and was worried that I was cold. So he asked me if I was cold, sort of wrapping his arms around me to keep me warm, right. I turned, told him I was fine and…Well…We, um, kissed. It was an accident, I swear! He was right there, I was right there and we just sort of…I'm not even going to write about this. _

_And so I pulled away/he pulled away and he was looking kind of guilty but before either of us could say anything this big chiming clock noise filled the castle. Like Cinderella; it was definitely midnight. And I realized just who he was._

_He was, surprise, surprise, James Potter and he seemed to realize who he was at the same time. I was shocked, he was shocked, we were shocked. He said something like, "Lily! Oh, Merlin, I'm so sorry," blah blah blah, blah blah blah. On and on and I was really tired and I just wanted him to shut up so I could get to bed so I…Kissed him again, kind of. I was tired, I don't know what I was thinking! It must have been those questionable drinks that the vampire-costumed man was serving! _

_But he was really nice to me when he didn't know who I was._

_If we ever have a child, we're naming him Harry._

_I sooo did not just write that. _

_Love,_

_A very confused Lily Evans_

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

I don't write romance. But I did. How scary. But it's _Lily_ and _James_ I had to do_ something_ before Harry went home…I don't know. It was purely unintentional. And I'll just tell everyone that, while I've read a couple romance fics (if they were good), I've never done anything romantic in my life so…Right. It's probably unrealistic. And sappy. And who-knows-what else. Needless to stay, I'm staying out of the romance zone from now on. Maybe I should have made it an extra chapter or an extra fic? I can always do that anytime. Tell me what you think I should do, then.

I skipped a bunch in this chapter (sorry about that) including most of Evan's remaining month but I'm as anxious to get Harry back to the future as much as some of you.

And here we go. Next chapter: He's back in his own time.


	18. Memories Reclaimed

It has been a while. I needed a short break. Too tired to write anything else here. See you in the next update, then (or, alternatively, the end of the chapter, which I wrote when I was slightly more coherent).

_How did Salazar manage to build a school and then off himself at age sixteen? Isn't that a bit young?_

_Hm…I know I tried to squish it a little. Let's see. He was (sort of) raised by his parents and in magical school until he was seven (remember, magical schools accepted young according to magical strength…I think I put that somewhere), when his mother was killed by is father and he was transferred to another school, met Godric, Helga, Rowena. All decided to build a magic school together (succeeded sometime in…Early teens?), worked at the school for a couple years and then he started arguing with Godric (a year, half a year?) before his sixteenth birthday when he was banished and killed himself. I'll try and set more exact dates later. Also, I'll try and work those in to the memories to clear it up. But I'm falling asleep so…Later, later. _

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

:Mindspeech:

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Eighteen: Memories Reclaimed**

It was that night again, Severus Snape, potions master of Hogwarts, mused silently, adding a pinch of powdered Erumpent horn to a simmering cauldron and giving a satisfied nod as it turned blood red. For the past few years, the night of the twenty-first of August had been accompanied by steadily worsening moods and frustration. He no longer knew why he still hung the note on the door, now spelled to read 'Potions Master at Work, Do Not Disturb', only that it was mostly out of habit. He no longer had any hopeful ideas that some forgotten friend would come and rescue him from his miserable life as a spy, nor did he believe that such a person existed. Maybe, then, it was curiosity that made him attach that note to his door, curiosity at who this person could be that had once inspired such feelings in him as friendship, trust, and loyalty. Perhaps next year he would not put up the note and merely leave the door empty. Perhaps then he could let the memories and curiosity die. He did not truly believe himself as he thought this, however, as he had been thinking that same thought every year and it still had yet to happen. Not this year, though, as the note was already on his door.

Pushing such thoughts away, he turned back to the potion that he was working on, carefully bottling it away in several glass vials, and neatly labeling each one before sitting down at his desk to write out his thoughts and theories about the improved potion. The piece of parchment he was using was quickly covered in writing and he was on his second roll of parchment when he was interrupted by a knock on the door.

Snape froze but, but did not allow any other feelings to surface and resumed writing.

"Come in," he called, still not looking up from his paper. There were the scuffling noises of the door being pulled open and then silence, his visitor waiting patiently for him to finish. Having his thought process interrupted, it didn't take long for Snape to loose his train of thought and he looked up, irritated at whoever had the nerve to interrupted, and even more annoyed to see that it was Potter, of all people, looking nervous (just great, a guilty-looking Gryffindor was _not_ what he wanted to see at this time of night). He had almost hoped…but no. "What do you want, Potter?" he snapped.

Potter flinched slightly, "I…"

"Well, get on with it Potter!" Snape said.

-Release Severus Snape from my magic,- Potter whispered. The lights in the room seemed to flare up, and Snape staggered as a wall of memories hit him.

_A person (body?) lay in a large pool of blood…Dumbledore was speaking to him and the werewolf, while a person with messy black hair and green eyes watched from behind them…"SLYTHERIN-GRYFFINDOR!"…"I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks," Evan said coolly as Lucius Malfoy held out his hand…"You may call me Evan."…"It sounds like fun, doesn't' it?" Evan asked brightly while Severus stared at him in disbelief…"I know!" Evan exclaimed so exuberantly and suddenly that Severus jumped and nearly fell off of his bed, "Poison!"…"No force on Earth that I have yet encountered could stop a Gryffindor from eating if the food's right in front of them and they don't have a reason not to."…"I caught Pettegrew sneaking around somewhere around there. You think this calls for a retaliation prank?" His expression and voice turned slightly dreamy, "Something big…and lots of mass chaos…"…"Aw, Sev, you're no fun," Evan pouted, "Whatever, it's not like I wasn't expecting it. Anyways, I got this."…"I'm sorry, Sev, I didn't mean to get all upset," Evan apologized, "It just annoys me when people mistake me for somebody I'm not."…"Of all the stupid, idiotic, Gryffindorish things to do," Evan muttered…"Go!" Evan hissed. He looked a bit pale himself, Severus noticed through the cobwebs that still stuck to his mind. "He's really angry. If you don't go soon he might kill you!"…-Serphenia?-…:Do it.:…"Um…I'm sorry?"…"I can't stand rats."…"I've done the calculations and I've got a month left to live…in the Slytherin dorms. Then I'm packing up and I've gotta go. Family reasons."…"…on some big and noble Gryffindor quest-type-thing."…"They're all gone, you know…"…Don't make promises you can't keep."…"Bingo. Salazar Slytherin…"…"I'm not from this time."…"My friends know me as Harry."…"Goodbye…"…_

And still more memories, more details continued to pour in, in a never-ending torrent of remembered sounds, feelings, and words. Two months worth of tastes and smells, two months worth of words and memories and dreams…Angry and confused, Snape lashed out,

"I suppose you think this funny, do you Potter? Messing with _time_ of all things? I knew that you were just like your father but I wouldn't have thought that even _you_ would go that low just for a bit of petty revenge…"

For a split second, the mask crumbled and Snape could see emotions locked behind it. For a split second, Snape saw emotions flitting across Potters face, before quickly being stifled as new masks flew up to hide his emotions.

"So be it," Potter said in an emotionless voice that made the hairs on the back of Snape's neck stand on end and he turned to leave, "I'm sorry for bothering you at this time of night, professor." And the he calmly left the room, the door closing quietly behind him. Snape watched him go, feelings that, oddly enough, felt like guilt and worry rising up inside of them.

A sudden burning sensation pulled him away from those disturbing thoughts and he pulled the amulet that Evan (_Potter_, he corrected himself) had given him for Christmas those many years ago out of his robes. It was burning hot and the multicolored stone that it held was glowing with a violent shade of red. Of course it was cursed; Potter had given it to him after all. A sudden increase in heat caused him to drop it, and he backed away; he didn't want to get caught in some nasty hex or prank.

The amulet started glowing, growing rapidly brighter until he raised his arms to shield his eyes from the glare, which was extremely lucky, as the amulet exploded seconds later; pieces of silver ricocheting off the wall. When he decided that it was safe, he uncovered his eyes, looking around for the damage that the little pieces of silver must have caused. The amulet was lying in the middle of the room, only the jewel remaining untouched, save the single, large crack splitting it nearly in half; the stone swirled with a dull, grey mist. The pieces of silver that must have been flying around the room just a second ago were gone and wrapped around the jewel was a large, silvery snake.

The snake, which Snape recognized as the one that Potter had met in that Care of Magical Creatures class all those years ago, regarded him coolly before slithering silently out the door that Potter had left open, leaving Snape with the unsettling feeling that something was not right.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Harry left the office calmly, walking down the hallway until he was out of earshot before breaking into a run. Tears streamed down his face as the makeshift mask crumbled. He felt like collapsing and letting himself sob openly, but he couldn't do it in the open corridor, where someone could find him, though nobody else would be wandering the halls of Snape's manor at this time of night. Instead he ran, not quite sure of where he was going. He was acting on instinct now, his feet carrying him without command.

His feet took him up stairs and through passageways, and his ears remained oblivious to the hissing calls of the snakes he passed. Harry ran up to a tower, the one where Salazar had used to go to think. The previously moonlit night was now dark and stormy, thunder rumbling not to far away, although Harry didn't hear it.

The tower was a dead end, though, with nowhere else to run. He paused for a second, unsure of where to go. Then, without further hesitation, he leapt off of the tower, summoning his Firebolt wandlessly as he did so, although not particularly caring if the broomstick reached him before he hit the ground. It was a warm night, however, despite the quickly gathering clouds; the window to the room that he shared with Draco was wide open and the Firebolt reached him quickly.

And so Harry flew; his broom clumsy in his soaring dance. He spun downward in a tight spiral and pulled up, and his broom, not twisting sharply enough, shot off into the forest. He darted through the tops of the tall trees, tears pouring freely under the cover of the forest. A turn came a moment too soon and Harry was knocked off his broom as the tail of the broom crashed into a tree trunk.

As he fell towards the ground, gravity pulling him ever faster, his wings opened on instinct, spreading wide and slowing his fall. Then, with the flapping of his enormous wings, he was lifted up into the air again, over the treetops back into the open sky above.

It was raining now, the heavens crying for him as he flew. Icy wind tore through the sky, chilling Harry's already wet skin, but he took no notice of it. The trees tossed their branches angrily, and a fork of lightning lit the sky, but still Harry flew on.

He flew for what felt like hours, racing the lightning and spinning, twirling, spiraling through the air. His wings grew heavy from the long flight, but he ignored the pain. Harry dived again, skimming the grass, but his it was too much for his wings, and he fell to the muddy earth with a cry of surprise.

Harry skidded to a stop at the foot of a large tree, thoroughly muddy, rain pouring down on his back and dripping down his face as he lifted it out of the mud. He pushed himself up from where he had been laying face-down in the mud with one hand so that he was on his knees and used the other to scrub at his muddy face with his equally muddy cloak-sleeve, his wings curled protectively around him, partly shielding him from the rain. He felt drained, exhausted, and yet still somehow restless. He pulled out his daggers.

He only had three left, and, having left the two longer ones with Severus when he left that time the three that he had left were all poisoned. Did it really matter? He wasn't sure he wanted to live long enough to meet Draco, who was now also Godric; Harry had felt the surge of magic when the other founder had regained his memories. And so he bled.

There was a trill of phoenix song from above him as the poison started to take effect.

"Leave me alone, you stupid bird!" Harry muttered, too far gone to shout. But the phoenix paid no mind to his anger and landed next to him, dropping fat, pearly tears onto the wound. "Leave!" Harry hissed and struck at the bird with his unwounded arm but he was still weak from the poison and Fawkes was merely in the air above him again in a flash of red and gold feathers. And having such energy meant that the phoenix's healing tears had worked. He could not attempt to use his daggers again any time soon, either, for the phoenix tears still running through his wound and blood would heal any injuries that he obtained for the next several hours.

He gave an ironic snort of laughter. Not even Godric could kill him now, not unless he used one of the nastier dark spells, which Godric would never do. He slumped against the tree trunk, defeated, as the clouds above him gave way to harsh moonlight. He could still _feel_ the magic in the air and he didn't doubt that, had he bothered to prepare for it, caught moonlight from tonight would be particularly potent, the crystallized form brighter and harder even than diamonds. Good for hatred potions, and love potions too. Most any potion that dealt with manipulating the mind, for that matter. He vaguely wondered if Severus had thought to catch any. But it was Professor Snape now, wasn't it?

And so he sat back, letting the emotions play themselves around his head in a detached manner. Anger…Oh yes, there was a lot of that. Anger at the world, and, most of all, anger at himself, for allowing himself to trust again, when he of all people should have known how unbalanced long-suppressed memories were. Sadness…A feeling of betrayal…Hope was hidden in the far corner of his mind, today, Love and Friendship were lost and alone in the whirlpool of negative emotions, and Hatred was right up there with Anger. Tiredness…He was tired of the world, tired of being betrayed and loving and hoping. Tired of anger and hatred and sadness. Tired of friendship and loyalty, being hurt and hiding from hurt. Tired of betraying and being betrayed, hiding secrets and revealing ones he'd rather not know. And somehow, in all of these mixed emotions, he found a strange type of peace.

His magic wrapped around him as he thought, and, spiraling outward, explored the grounds of the manor that had once rightfully been his. Serphenia had slithered off with his daggers some time ago and had employed Fawkes' help in stashing his wand somewhere high in the tree, lest he try anything 'stupid' but not too far away, but not too far, in case he managed to get himself in trouble. Again. Fawkes had also dropped a warm blanket that she had found somewhere in the castle over his shoulders, where it still hung, Harry too apathetic to even bother shrugging it off.

The paintings and all the snakes of the castle were worried about him (and that reminded him, if he was not going to give up on life altogether, he needed to warn them about how they spoke to him, as well as the snake speakers of Hogwarts; it wouldn't do for them to start calling him 'Lord Slytherin' in front of his once again least favorite teacher), they did not want to loose him yet again. Snape was still working in the potions lab but Harry took a vicious pleasure in seeing how disturbed the Potions Master's aura was. Draco, or Godric, or Gryffindor, or whoever he was, was still asleep, still reliving the past. Harry hadn't taken so long but he expected that his friend (or not so much friend) had lived at least a bit longer than Salazar himself so there was no reason to worry. And even if the time came his still wouldn't worry…Would he? Not even for Draco? Harry did not know and did not want to continue the thought.

Harry subtly changed his magic's path, to the forest and the many creatures, magical and not, that lived within. He explored so thoroughly, so desperate to think of anything but betrayal and his once-friends, that his magic had touched every rock and every tree, every cave and twig and rabbit and unicorn. He spent hours like that, until the sun started to rise, upon which his magic withdrew slightly and his wings faded into nothingness. That the sun had so much power on his magic, on his being marked him as a so-called Dark wizard. There were far too many Dark rituals (and there were never any Light rituals) that restricted its user's powers during daytime or, alternatively, granted the user more power after sunset. Not that he had ever had any need of such rituals; he had never used them. Still, he noticed that Godric, a pure Light wizard, had his powers heightened in daytime.

Night and day. He supposed that's how they had complimented each other and ultimately failed. They could never understand each other, though it was neither and both's faults.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Draco opened his eyes blearily and blinked. He looked around and blinked again. Harry was missing. He blinked once more. The face of another emerald-eyed wizard swam briefly in his mind's eye before disappearing. Shrugging, he looked around again and his eyes fell on a regal looking red and gold bird. _Fawkes_.

And he remembered.

Everything that he had relived last night, everything that he had dreamed, that had seemed so…real. Frighteningly so because he knew, deep down, that it _had_ been real. Sal…Re'na…Helga…They had all been his friends, had worked with him towards their goal. Except Sal…Sal was different. He was Godric…(Godric?)…'s best friend and yet he was so _different_. Refreshingly, frighteningly so, like a breath of the nighttime sky, cold, mysterious, alone…

Dark.

And so they had forced him to leave, even though he was their friend. Even though he deserved so much more, at least a chance to defend himself. _But we gave him plenty of chance…_his thoughts whispered, _We gave him _years_…_

And then Sal had left, quietly, without much fuss…He was just gone from their lives, as though he'd never been. Godric had expected revenge, had wanted it. That would tell him he was right for forcing his best friend to leave.

But it had never come.

And after so long, after too long, Godric started questioning. Sal was different but did that make him dangerous? Sal was suspicious but did that mean he was hiding something? Sal was dark…but did that make him evil?

Salazar had never returned to the school. Godric had never gotten his answer.

And it was too late for Godric to follow behind his friend.

For the muggles, it would seem like Godric Gryffindor had lived a long time. By wizard standards, all four founders died young.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

There was someone approaching. Even before Harry recognized the aura he shot up into the tree on instinct, his temporary peacefulness replaced by a buzz of anxiousness and a sickening lurching in his stomach that was fear and anger. Upon recognizing the aura of the approaching wizard, and the phoenix flying above him, he calmed down, at least outwardly. Though he looked calm and half-asleep, staring lazily off into the sky, he was tensely alert, his whole attention on the approaching wizard.

"Gryffindor," He greeted blandly when Draco was too close to ignore. He was rewarded when he felt the other wizard paused and not come any closer.

"I always did wonder how you did that," Draco said hesitantly, sitting down on the grass, "Sal."

"I believe that would be 'Slytherin' to you, Gryffindor. You have no right to use such familiar words with me." Harry fought kept his voice neutral but still a small sneer snuck into it.

"I…I'm sorry," Draco said in a small voice, "I should have listened. Should have let you speak."

"And yet I did not take the opportunity to do so, when you waited for years." His voice was neutral but Draco felt that he was being tested, measured somehow, "Tell, me, Gryffindor. You could not have waited forever, what else was there to do?"

"I…could have asked. I wanted to ask," Draco offered, "I…still want to ask but…" But how could you find the words to ask a friend something like that?

"My life before Hogwarts was…not pleasant," Harry said softly, "Both of them." And so he spoke, never looking down at where Draco was sitting on the ground. He spoke of Salazar Slytherin and he spoke of Harry Potter. Every memory, every word, everything that he could remember about either life, he told Draco, who listened silently. Sometimes he spoke exuberantly, sometimes he was mocking, but all too many times he was merely quiet, withdrawn, and sad. These were the memories that hurt to talk about. His banishment, his betrayals, the people that he had loved, his friends…the people that he had seen die.

When his story was finished, Harry's throat was sore and his voice slightly hoarse. Draco didn't know what to do. What could he say to that? And so softly, hesitantly, he told his own story. Startled, Harry looked at him before sitting back to listen. A Light family that had been slaughtered by Dark wizards. Love. Betrayal. A Dark family that alternatively spoiled and neglected him, pressuring him to do things that he didn't want to do. Disowning him.

They sat back in silence, thinking over each other's lives. Thinking about the future. Thinking about the other two founders and Hogwarts.

"I _am_ sorry, you know," Draco said after a moment of thoughtful silence, "I really should have…"

"There's nothing to be sorry for," Harry interrupted in a slightly irritated tone, "You did some horrible things and I did some horrible things. We're even, okay?"

Draco's face opened up into a sincere grin,

"Thank you."

Harry muttered something about 'Gryffindors' but smiled back,

"Let's go back to the house."

He was really, truly tired of suspicion and pessimism. Maybe, just one more time, he would try. Try to trust and believe. Maybe he would cry again. Maybe he would have nightmares. Maybe he would be hurt. But on the whole, things were, ever so slightly, looking up.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

That would be a good place to end the story, wouldn't it? But I'm not _that_ evil. There are still several more chapters to go. And now onto the fun stuff crackles

Random note (I couldn't fit this into my story): Harry reappears in Hogwarts…And then gets the hell out of there before the wards can attack him again. He has to give Sev and Godric a chance to kill him before he lets any old wards get the satisfaction. If anyone is confused at that.

Strangely enough, I feel the need to share this with you: for the most part (especially the middle of this chapter), this chapter was based on that feeling…Well if something gets you really upset and you cry for a long time then finally you'll start feeling better (and even best if it was someone who got you upset and they apologized sincerely) and then everything starts looking up a little. Because I'm an emotional, sappy teen, of course…


	19. Eye of the Storm

So I know I haven't written forever. My muses have moved on to (according to them) bigger, better fandoms. Well, probably not bigger. Anyhow, I miss the Harry Potter fandom and I know you guys might miss me (or am I just being egotistical?). Mostly I just feel guilty for not updating in forever. So this chapter was written with some extremely uncooperative muses. A bit forced? Maybe. I know I sat down at least three times to force out this chapter and got little done with each attempt (not to mention today when I _did_ get something done, my comper died four times when I was in the middle of writing; thankfully, I'm a frequent saver). I hope you all like it just the same. And on to the story!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Nineteen: Eye of the Storm  
**

There was silence.

It was the awkward type of silence where one usually had to fight the urge to fidget uncomfortably and yet Snape wondered if he was the only one who noticed it. Of course Slytherins simply did not _fidget_ and so Snape sat still.

Fidget.

No, Draco seemed to notice the looming atmosphere as well. His student was alternating between eating another bite of his breakfast, sitting perfectly still, playing absentmindedly with his silverware, and staring at either his Head of House or Potter.

And Potter himself seemed perfectly comfortable, leaning back casually in his seat and quietly humming a song that Snape didn't recognize. Presently he leaned forward and whispered something in Draco's ear, causing the Slytherin to choke on the pumpkin juice he had just raised to his mouth. Potter leaned back, grinning, as Draco spluttered and stared wildly around at Potter, the slightly transparent ward-snake wrapped around his shoulders (how long had she been there?), and then around the room.

"You serious?" He wheezed out finally, after he had managed to clear the pumpkin juice from his windpipe. His voice was quiet and smothered in the silence, or maybe he subconsciously kept his voice down because of it.

"'Course I am," Potter said in a jokingly offended tone of voice.

"But…How?"

Potter shrugged,

"Just another one of those things, I guess."

"He's not…" Draco said weakly, gesturing towards Snape, who frowned, obviously missing something.

"No, I don't _think_ so…But he's Slytherin Head so…Or it might be from his family."

"_You_ don't even know?"

"Oh come on…You were there longer than I and, anyways, I don't know very much about what I agreed to when we did that. But it's only every fifty years or so and he's not _that_ old."

And again there was silence, Draco seemingly accepting these words as Snape puzzled over them. But then again, there was no reason to care about anything _Potter_ said…

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"I can't believe it," Draco grumbled as he followed Harry towards their room, "In your whole entire retelling you never _once_ told me that this house used to belong to you."

"Never came up," Harry said casually, not really caring, "I told you everything else, though. I think."

"You _sure_?"

"Of course not. But I'll tell you anything that I forgot if it ever comes up." They stopped in front of the picture that guarded their rooms.

"Ah, right," Harry said, somewhat sheepishly, "Draco, this is my mother. Mother, this is Godric Gryffindor, though he is going by the name Draco Malfoy."

Draco looked at him blankly,

"You just _forgot_ to mention…"

"Yes, I did," and there was a tone in his voice that made Draco drop the subject.

"So this is the Gryffindor heir," Salazar's mother interrupted smoothly, "The one you were friends with?"

"Yes," Harry said in the same frosty tone that he had used on Draco.

"Now don't talk to me like that," the portrait chided, "I can't believe that he's been living in my room for over a _month_ and you never thought to introduce him."

Harry muttered something along the lines of 'sorry' 'tired' and 'long night' that even Draco, who was standing right to him, had a hard time understanding.

"Anyways, I think that I'm going to collapse onto bed for a couple hours until I have to come out for lunch. Or, if Snape ignores me for long enough, dinner."

"Hey…" Draco started, but Harry had already gone inside, "Hey, Sal…" he tried again, following Harry into their room.

"_What?_" Harry snapped and then paused, "I'm sorry. Tired. Going to bed. If I talk to you again now, I don't know what I'll end up saying."

And that was that. Harry didn't quite lock him out, but Draco thought that he'd let his friend have some time to himself for a while. As Draco understood it, the other boy had had a long, stressful day and no chance to sleep (not to mention the sheer amount of magic he had used in that time period). While he knew that Salazar had been able to withstand much worse, after so long his patience got understandably frayed and he was difficult to deal with. The Gryfindor-reincarnated-Slytherin wondered off, determined to have a nice conversation with his familiar about how low the standards of _their_ school had sunken in the last couple hundred years.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Lunch was almost as awkward as breakfast, or even more so. Snape was ignoring the others in favor of his food and portions' journal and Harry estimated that, by dinner, he probably wouldn't bother showing up. Certainly Harry's own cheerfulness was starting to feel rather forced but at least Draco was responding more now, instead of just fidgeting.

The wards tingled suddenly as magic flared to life just outside of them. A Portkey or apparation; there was no way of telling which with such little magic.

-No threat,- Ther hissed into his ear, -It is one of Dumbledore's silly little light children. The wolf.- Harry jumped a bit, not having noticed her enter through the wall behind him. He knew why she had been so quiet about it, though; all the snakes in the manor were careful about being noticed, now that Snape could understand them. Harry had already given a large gathering of them a stern lecture about their behavior around the other Parseltongue (Snape's abilities to understand Parseltongue being unlocked with the release of his memories) and those who had been present spread the word to the immobile ones (mostly statues and the guardians of certain doors and passages that couldn't abandon their stations).

"I'll get it," he declared, jumping to his feet. He then grabbed Draco and ran off, eager to be away from the awkward feeling. Three quick shortcuts later and they were at the front entrance, Draco grumbling his protests.

Opening the door, he faked a look of surprise when he saw Remus approaching the castle,

"Remus!" or wait…hadn't he been calling the werewolf "Professor Lupin" in this time? Well, he figured Remus wouldn't mind so it didn't really matter as long as nobody really noticed any major attitude differences.

"Harry," Remus looked surprised and hurried his pace, reaching the door rather quickly, "It's good to see you again...but shouldn't Severus be answering his own door?"

"Probably," Harry agreed, "but he's back there somewhere," he made a vague flapping motion back the way he had come, "He'll be here in a couple minutes." Remus sighed but seemed to decide against the lecture on safety risks. Harry had heard enough of them from other people, anyways (but then he really hadn't, when he thought about it, just "Stay in the house and don't talk to any strange men in Death Eater clothing" – the Order's security really was rather lax).

"Well then…Happy belated birthday. I'm sorry I couldn't send you something but I did bring you this," he handed Harry a wrapped box and Harry ignored the red and gold wrapping paper in favor of being genuinely pleased, "but you should hold onto it for a while; we have a lot to do today."

"'We'?" Harry asked.

"Dumbledore agreed to let me take you to Diagon Alley for a couple days as his own belated birthday gift for you. So for the next few days we're free to do whatever you want…within limits, of course. We can get you your school things and your apparation license as well…So how about it; do you want to come?"

"Of course! This is great! Only…" he trailed off, looking hopeful, "Can Draco come to? 'Cause it's his birthday only I didn't get him a gift 'cause I couldn't go anywhere. Please? I promise he'll be good!" When Remus didn't immediately reply, he grabbed Draco, "Come on, give him that _look_."

"_What_ look?" Draco asked, bemused.

"You know, that one you get when you want something from…When you want something. And that one that looks like a kicked puppy when they refuse?

Draco looked almost scandalized, his pureblood heritage in both lives dictating that he act offended,

"I _don't_ look like a kicked puppy!"

"Do so," Harry replied, sticking his tongue out.

"Do _not_," Draco insisted, "_Potter_."

"_Malfoy._"

"Slytherin!"

"Griffie!"

"Don't care, Slytherin, Slytherin, Slytherin!"

Remus's laughter cut off any retort that Draco might have had (bound to be childish by both the level of maturity of the previous statements and his pout),

"Let's not waste our time fighting. Ah, there's Severus." Harry and Draco turned around to look and sure enough, their professor was behind them _looming_ in a way that made Harry want to act the part of the guilty student (which was just _weird_ after knowing Snape as a student and having so many memories of being a teacher himself).

"Potter!" the Potions Professor snapped, "Never do that again! Do you fully comprehend how _dangerous_ it is to run up to the entrance way? What if it had _not_ been Mr. Lupin here and you had just let in a group of Death Eaters through the last barrier in the wards?!?" Apparently, Snape had decided to take up Remus's neglected role as lecturer.

It was slightly insulting that Snape would think that Harry would make a simple mistake like that even after he knew that Harry wasn't totally incompetent at such things but he swallowed his anger. After all, Snape seemed to think that that whole time period was an elaborate hoax. Well, _fine._ Noticing that his thoughts were heading towards petulancy, he pulled himself back to the present and tried to act suitably chastised in response to Snape's berating. Draco muffled a laugh (though it was probably more at his disbelief at Harry's sincerity than any lack of acting skills on the former-Slytherin's part). Harry swatted him, breaking his efforts to look apologetic. It wasn't like they would have been very successful - Snape _had _known Harry's father, after all.

Snape looked ready to start ranting on safety again but Remus cut him off,

"Now, Severus, it's too nice of a day to start lecturing them on something they've probably heard several times before."

"And it's my birthday," Draco muttered petulantly, "No lecturing on my birthday." It was Harry's turn to muffle a laugh, though Draco just ignored him with a haughty air.

"Yes, there is that," Remus smiled, "And that was something I wanted to talk to you about. Dumbledore has agreed to let me take Harry to Diagon Alley for four days and Harry has requested that Mr. Malfoy - sorry, um..." He paused, apparently not sure if it was still proper to call him that.

"Draco works," Draco filled in for him.

"Thank you. As I was saying, Harry had requested that Draco comes along as something of a birthday gift. This seems perfectly acceptable if we take the same precautions with him as we'll be taking with Harry in terms of glamour and protection spells. All that is left is to notify Dumbledore and ask your acceptance of this plan, as you are acting as something of a temporary guardian to Draco, correct?"

Snape took a second to brood on it,

"Is Potter to cheap to buy Draco a real present?" Both former Founders made noises of protests but he continued over them, "The plan seems acceptable. I leave Draco's well-being as your responsibility, then. Dumbledore's phoenix..." Again, Draco made a noise of protest. This time it was not ignored; Snape paused and looked at Draco. Draco made a gesture to continue, though he had a strange look on his face. "As I was saying, Dumbledore's phoenix is temporarily residing here with Potter and should be able to deliver your message."

Within ten minutes it was all set up and Harry, Draco, and Remus were on their way to the apparation point some distance from the castle entrance at a leisurely pace. Harry, still slightly annoyed, was mimicking Snape's final words in several different voices - mostly high falsettos (he'd already spent the five minutes prior attacking and finding flaws in the logic of everything that the Potions Professor had said and had once again degraded to childishness).

Draco was becoming slightly annoyed, not to mention uncomfortable with the bashing of his Head of House. Of course he was angry at the man for being closed-minded and slightly cruel to his best friend (the Gryffindor part of him was especially enraged at the slight to his friend - but also knew he had no room to talk) this was also the man that had taken care of Draco for the majority of his Hogwarts years and then some. He and Harry need to have a _talk_ about how they felt about the current Slytherin Head of House and _then_ he could decide to be righteously angry at the Potions Master.

"Yeah, yeah, we get it already," Draco said, rolling his eyes, "You don't like the guy." There was a flicker of something in Harry's eyes and he had an air about him that said he was about to correct Draco but he didn't say anything. "Anyways," Draco added in a slightly lower voice, "Um...I thought he was, you know, kind of mad at you," Harry gave a laugh at the understatement, though there was no joy in it, "So why did he agree so fast?"

"'Cause it's you," Harry said as if it should have been obvious, "He might be mad at me, but why would he deny _you_ happiness. He doesn't think that you might have been in on the 'joke'. And, anyways," he added as an afterthought, "There's no need to whisper, Remus can hear everything we say." The werewolf's posture stiffened ever-so-slightly but Harry didn't clarify and there were no further remarks hinting at Remus's secret.

"It's like chaperoning a group of first years, I suppose," Draco said thoughtfully, "Even when they try and keep their voices low, I can hear everything they say. Not that I want to...Well, _you _know..." And Harry did know; Salazar himself had been a teacher and the Head of Slytherin.

"I assure you that everything you say interests me greatly," Remus said, "Though that was probably the wrong thing to say. And I'm sure that I, at least, know that feeling, having been a teacher for a while. I'm not sure if Harry would know the feeling, not having been a prefect; though he did teach for some time."

"Hmm...Oh yeah, that's right! You were a prefect, weren't you Draco?" Harry said, adding rather unnecessarily, "One of _Slytherin's_."

"Stop it," Draco pouted, "It's my birthday. No being mean to me on my birthday."

"_Very_ mature," Harry complimented. Draco stuck his tongue out at him.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Wooooow," Harry spun around, amusing himself with the bright blurs of color it created in his vision (Diagon Alley couldn't be called anything if not colorful), "I never get over how big and crowded this place is!" The best part was, of course, that in his acting, he didn't have to give any thought to his own reputation since they were all hiding under various glamour charms. Since they looked nothing like themselves and even had to try and play their various roles (Remus as a parent or guardian while Harry and Draco were supposedly muggleborn students; fourth years or so, it actually helped not to be incredibly tall for once) they could behave as outrageously as they wanted, so long as they didn't draw _too_ much attention to themselves.

"Stop that," Draco tried to grab Harry but the green-eyed boy just spun out of the way, "You're making me dizzy."

Harry stuck his tongue out at him but stopped so abruptly that he lost his balance and nearly fell down,

"Whooo…spiiiiining…Anyways," he continued, regaining his original volume and enthusiasm, "What's first? I've got to get aaaall my school stuff and I need to take my apparation test and we probably need to get somewhere to sleep and we need to do something for Draco's birthday and…Um…Probably other stuff, too…"

"Sal? Shut up. Now." Draco didn't seem to share his enthusiasm but he was still smiling.

"Rooms were arranged ahead of time in the Leaky Cauldron and Dumbledore assured me that another bed would be added to one of the rooms," Remus said helpfully, "And while I'd usually suggest getting all the necessary things for school out of the way first, why don't we just look around and celebrate Draco's birthday? After all, _that's_ only today."

"Great! Where do you want to go then?" Harry asked Draco.

Draco shrugged,

"Don't care."

"Choose," Harry demanded.

"Doesn't matter, you choose."

"Choose," Harry repeated, "It's _your_ birthday."

"I really don't…" Draco started to say but Harry cut him off with a _look_, "Fine. Um…Bookstore?"'

Harry laughed,

"R'ena would approve. Bookstore it is then!" He grabbed Draco's arm and dragged him off towards the nearest (and biggest) bookstore, Flourish and Blott's.

The rest of the day was spent wondering around Diagon Alley, buying what they wanted and pretending not to see various Order members following them around. Harry had even suggested at some point that they venture into Muggle London but was shot down by Remus who had said Dumbledore had forbidden that they leave Diagon Alley. They had gotten a lot of Harry's school shopping done along the way but had also been able to get they wanted; a book of pranks with a couple of other books sneaked in as well from the bookstore, a handful of potions ingredients more than the standard set that would be useful more in potions for pranks and other things from the apothecary, and little amulet for Draco (Harry later confessed that it was worthless in all but it's nice looks before he had layered on a couple of rather nice little protective charms and other 'special features' he refused to name) from a little store near the ice cream shop. Anything else that they might eventually need, Harry wanted to get without drawing Remus's or their guards' attentions (and, anyways, he'd already gotten most of that on his trip to Diagon Alley earlier that summer).

The next morning, Harry awoke to find an owl with a letter at his window. The letter said that his OWLs were delayed because Professor McGonagall had needed some time to convince Snape to let Harry into his class (though there was no way that Snape had agreed recently so the letter must have been quite old; after all, all McGonagall had probably needed to do was go to Dumbledore and have him make Snape accept Harry into the Potions class). Looking at his grades, he found he didn't really care what he'd gotten (all decent grades except History, though there was a side-note that there had been some sort of interruption), though he was slightly disappointed to see that he'd gotten and EE in potions rather than an O. Of course, Harry hadn't had any reason to do better at the time. The letter also said that he didn't have to do the homework, as the letter had come so late, but Harry ignored it and did the assignment anyways. Of course Snape would find it a good reason to pick on him in class if he didn't do the first assignment.

Their other three days in Diagon Alley passed rather similarly to the first. On the second day, Remus picked up a packet from the small, official-looking shop next to Gringotts where most students took their apparation tests before continuing where they'd left off the previous day and finishing Harry's school shopping. Instead of spending the late afternoon and night studying it like he was supposed to, Harry snuck off with Draco to Knockturn Alley. On the third day, Harry cram-studied and easily passed the written portion of the Apparation testing and then passed the physical part of the test on his first try. He was forced to practice a few times to make sure that the first time wasn't a fluke and left the office in something like record time, then heading off to eat an early lunch. Remus stayed in his room working on something for most of that day, though he did treat Harry to congratulatory ice cream. On the fourth day, nothing very eventful happened and at the end of the day, they packed up the little they had brought and everything they had bought and headed back to Snape Manor.

Though they hadn't truly been busy, in the four days that they had spent together Harry had not found time to approach the werewolf about his forgotten memories.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

It was actually a little strange, Harry mused while staring out the window of the Hogwarts Express, that the only place that he had been consistently attacked for the past five years was one of the only ones where the Order considered it safe for him to go without a guard. Not that it really mattered; he could take care of himself. Still, the Order of the Phoenix's backwards way of thinking still grated on his nerves even as he was grateful at the reprieve (they were, after all, supposedly in charge of his safety; if they were going to watch his every movement, he preferred they at least do an adequate job of it).

Worse, he didn't even have company, as Draco _had_ been sent ahead to Hogwarts…for his own safety, of course. And while it was true that Death Eater children _might_ try and ambush the Slytherin, the same could be said for Harry. Whoever thought that there might be safety in numbers didn't take into account that Draco would likely stick with Harry, thought they did seem to take into account that if Draco had been with Harry, Harry would be less likely to interact with the Gryffindors. Which was completely untrue.

Snape had abandoned his duties at the last minute, leaving Harry waiting for the Hogwarts Express _two hours_ early while the Professor and Draco went ahead to Hogwarts. At least the train was there that early (trains weren't that common as transportation for wizards and witches so there wasn't really anywhere else for it to be). Harry had chosen the furthest car that he could find from the Gryffindors' usual and had until then to figure out how to avoid them as long as possible (or, alternatively, how to act towards them). And, of course, since he was sure Dumbledore knew that Snape was coming early, Dumbledore might try and have the Weasleys arrive early as well. Having stayed with the family for several summers, however, Harry knew that this was unlikely to happen.

There were also several ways that he could avoid the Gryffindors. He would just lock the door but Harry rather thought that one of the prefects that would start patrolling the train could force it open at any time (it must be against some rule or another, especially with the slightly upgraded security). And if they didn't, of course there was the occasional teacher that did a quick check of the train before going back to wherever it was that they were staying. He could always hide with another group of students and hope to be overlooked or even use some basic Muggle disguise but there was a total of three or four other students there already and the largest already existing group was of two. The most obvious choice would, of course, to shapeshift so that none of his 'friends' would be able to recognize him but there were flaws in that plan as well. Patrolling teachers might panic upon not being able to find the boy-who-lived or might be suspicious of older students that they'd never seen before.

In the end, he decided to combine all these options. Harry spent over an hour reading, until a crowd started to gather (keeping an eye on the window the whole time in case Weasley family _did_ appear early). He locked the door and hung a couple spare cloaks over the glass so nobody could see into it, arranged some cloths to make it seem (in the dimly-lit compartment) like he was sleeping, and slipped out into the mass of students. Free of his trunk (he felt safe leaving it in the compartment since he was sure that nobody would be able to open it but him), he moved quickly in the multitude of students bogged down by their own luggage. Upon reaching the bathroom, he secured a stall for himself and shapeshifted inside it. Now looking like a first-year version of Evan Harrison with summoned robes (plain with no house symbol; he _was_ supposedly a first year, after all, and had yet to be sorted), he left, locking the stall behind him. There was always the convenient of excuse of 'I left to go to the bathroom' if he was ever questioned and an occupied stall paired with a missing student wasn't so suspicious.

Quite cheerful now that he could leave the name Harry Potter behind him, 'Evan' went off in search of camouflage. This he found in the shape of a small group of first years who had banded together against the strangeness of leaving their old surroundings behind. He was delighted to find, not only Muggle born students, but pureblood ones as well, and not only those in the 'bloodtraitor' category. In fact, within the group of six people, Harry was sure that at least two were potential Slytherins. The separation between houses, then, was largely carried out after the sorting ceremony rather than before; this was good to know.

Within the small group, Evan quickly became something of an authority figure, soothing the worries of the others (after all, why would _he_ worry about the sorting when he'd already gone through it…twice) and drawing the topics conversation away from the school. He wasn't the only one with this position, though he was the calmest of the three. A bossy blond kid that Evan had already labeled a probable Ravenclaw shared the knowledge about the school that he had gained from his older sister. The last person was a friendly girl that he had labeled a Gryffindor or Hufflepuff (he was leaning towards Hufflepuff) who boldly declared it didn't matter which house they put her in, she'd still remain friends with the whole group. The two possible Slytherins, for all that could be said about Slytherin ambition and pride, seemed happy being comforted and didn't try for any sort of position of authority.

Finally, when their conversation had been interrupted for the third time by various people searching for Harry Potter, Evan excused himself. Though he was sure that they would be suspicious when he failed to come back and was absent for the opening feast, he could think of no good excuse to give and just hoped that none of them would mention him. He winced as he imagined someone asking Snape why 'Evan Harrison' wasn't at the feast. He had never directly claimed to be a first year, anyways; hopefully they would assume he was a second or third year when he didn't show up.

He went to the bathroom first, managing to unobtrusively slip into the stall that he had locked, shapeshift back to the Harry Potter everyone was familiar with, and make his way back to the compartment where he had left his stuff. As expected, it had been forced open and the makeshift dummy that he had made out of spare cloths had been taken apart by someone. Also expected (but rather unpleasant) was the large group of people awaiting his return.

"There you are!" Hermione exclaimed once she noticed him, "Where have you _been_?! We've been looking all over for you!" The others (Ron, Ginny, Luna, and Neville) were quiet, though Ginny dropped the book she had been reading.

_Well, hellooo awkwardness,_ Harry thought, slightly thrown off guard, _I knew there was something I was forgetting_. The last person he had expected to see when he walked into the compartment was one of the other reincarnated Founders, let alone two of them. Of course he shouldn't have been so surprised; they were all somewhere at Hogwarts, he had been pretty sure of that. _Who_ they were, the reincarnated Slytherin hadn't been so sure until he met them face-to-face. By Ginny's shock, he easily deduced that she fully remembered who he was (but probably hadn't drawn the connection until the moment that she saw him). Luna, however, seemed unaffected and (thought it was a lot harder to tell with her) Harry didn't think that she remembered him yet.

"I've been in the bathroom," Harry replied innocently. The best way to react in this situation was not to react and trust Helga's reincarnation not to make a scene. He wasn't that worried; as long as she could keep her head together, common sense dictated the rest. Now the problem was how was she going to react when they were alone and how was _he_ going to react back? He wasn't ready for a confrontation so soon after his arrival in the school. Hopefully they wouldn't be able to talk for some time, giving him a chance to mentally prepare. Now, if Luna also had her memories, he was sure that both of them together could trap him for a confrontation rather easily. Rowena's birthday had been in the fall but there was always a possibility that Luna had received her memories the year before.

"The _bathroom_?" Hermione asked and Harry recognized the tone of voice that said she was about to go on a ranting spree, "You spent over half an hour…We were worried _sick_ about you? Why didn't you tell anybody you were going to the bathroom?"

"Look, I could hardly say 'Hey random first year, if someone comes and asks for Harry Potter, tell them that I'm in the bathroom.'" Harry protested, "And I didn't see anybody that I knew..."

"And just _how_ long were you in there?" Hermione asked sternly.

"Um…A long time? Look, it's the only place that I can go that I know random guards won't follow me around," Harry said, trying to act passably sheepish.

"_Honestly_," Hermione sighed, "Those guards are there for your own good. If you just hide from them all the time…" She lectured Harry for some time before Ron cut her off, only to start bragging about his own accomplishments.

Hermione would later say that, during the train ride, Harry was 'distracted' and spent a lot of time looking out the window. It would have been closer to the truth to say that he was actively ignoring the other Gryffindors. Though he probably would have been okay with talking to Luna, she was talking to Ginny, who he was also avoiding. He _did_ manage to strike up conversation with Neville at some point, only to be constantly interrupted by Ron and Hermione. In the end, he gave up and pretended to sleep while imagining ways to make Ron shut up, starting with 'harmless' pranks and ending in some rather nasty spells and potions.

The sun was fully set when they finally reached Hogsmeade station. Harry was at the end of his patience and Ginny could tell. The Slytherin-Gryffindor was amused to notice that she kept giving him nervous looks as though she expected him to blow up any second. The ride in the carriages was mostly uneventful. Harry had been nervous but there wasn't as much as a whisper from the wards; apparently Draco had been true to his word and had forced them to give up on harming the reincarnated Slytherin.

"But that's strange," Draco had said, "I _know_ we modified them to not attack you if they saw you. We were looking for you at the time so it would have been really pointless if you showed up only for them to kill you."

As they approached the castle, the usually enthusiastic bustle of the students was replaced with an almost gloomy-feeling solemnity. Even Ron shut up when he realized everyone was too distracted to care what he said, which was definitely a good thing. Harry was fully ready to show some of his 'true colors' (if not his true identity) to the school just for the sake of not having to listen to Ron any more. Most likely at the feast; if it was going to be dramatic anyways, why not make it a _show_?

Ahead of them, the giant doors of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry loomed open, golden candlelight illuminating the outline of the great arches with a dramatic flair.

He was finally home. Now he had to wait and see what would happen there.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

So...Yeaaaaah. I know it's been forever. And not much exciting stuff happened in this chapter. Sorry, sorry, the next chapter will be very good, promise! Also very sorry for the semi-cliffhanger but it's actually hard to stop at a place that _isn't _a cliffhanger. Will try and update again soon (I have some of the first part written) but I've heard rumors from my brother that my dad plans to take away my computer privileges...Well, whatever happens happens. Thank you all for putting up with me.

On other news, Tainted Betrayal is discontinued, possibly to be rewritten and continued sometime in the distant future (though I really wouldn't count on it). Sorry everyone and, again, thanks for your kind support of my story! Please review


	20. A Long Night

I know it's been a week but…Well, I was surprised how long this chapter took, too. Then I went and checked the word count and it's _over three times_ my normal chapter length. I nearly fell out of my chair (which has never happened to me so it surprised me even more). So there's my excuse and I'm sure everyone agrees it's much better than my usual ones.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty: A Long Night**

Entering the Great Hall for the Opening Feast was nothing like Harry's previous experiences doing so. For one thing, Harry's experiences consisted mostly of coming home to Hogwarts after a summer away and this time, he _hadn't_ spent the entire summer away from it (whereas in Salazar's memories, he'd stayed at the castle even when the students didn't and school was mostly year-round). It was just weeks ago that he had been taking classes here, presumably even with the same lesson plans than most of the classes he would start taking the next day. Yet it still seemed like some great homecoming after a long time away (which it was, in a way).

Trapped in the flow of students pushing and shoving for seats, Harry somehow (and quite suddenly) found himself sandwiched between Ron and Hermione with Ginny sitting across form him, seemingly determined to make eye contact. Really, how _had_ they managed that so easily? The former-Slytherin amused himself with the thought that maybe _that_ was what Ron had been practicing all summer before putting it down to pure Gryffindor luck and stubbornness. If nothing else, he could picture Ron shoving some poor first year out of his seat so that they could all sit together.

Determined neither to meet Ginny's eyes nor to pay any attention to the two Gryffindors sitting on either side of him, Harry's eyes wondered to the staff table. There was of course Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, Sinistra, Hagrid, and so on...and then there was Moody, who Harry was not all that surprised to see (Dumbledore's choice of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, no doubt). He also wasn't surprised to see Remus sitting between a gruff Moody and irritable Snape (as another person loyal to Dumbledore, he would have been another choice as a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, so Harry was slightly surprised to both Remus and Moody were there; either way, he wouldn't have traded seats for the man for anything short of Voldemort's immediate death and Dumbledore's expulsion from Hogwarts). He saw didn't see Trelawney but he didn't see Firenze either (not that he expected either to show up at a feast) so he wasn't sure about the whole staff (but really didn't care as he wasn't taking Divination this year).

His attention was drawn away from the teachers by a sudden hush as the Sorting Hat began to sing. He leaned back and closed his eyes, fingering his wand beneath the table. This part would be rather delicate and aiming through a crowd of students was hard enough without Ginny sitting across from him, watching his every move.

_Almost a thousand years ago,_

_Our story starts and ends_

_With a group of bright young sorcerers;_

_A group of loyal friends_

Ginny was still watching him; her attention hadn't wavered for an instant even when the Hat had started its song. This would be a problem.

_These four together did much_

_Where others alone had failed_

_And all together raised a school_

_For which they were forever hailed._

Aiming as carefully as he could while keeping his wand under the table, he tried casting the spell. A couple seats down the table, Colin Creevey jumped slightly but there were no other results. Damn, he must have missed; it was a good thing that this particular spell didn't have any effects on humans other than momentary discomfort.

_Together they agreed to split _

_The students; their fatal error,_

_For among the four one plotted_

_Until the school was filled with terror_

Now more annoyed than ever at the biased words, Harry adjusted his aim and tried again. The normally invisible spell shimmered slightly with power from his anger as it flew across the hall. Luckily, nobody seemed to notice this or the small breeze as it passed.

_This fear spread like poison_

_Among the houses four_

_Causing...ack..._

_Yes!_ Harry cheered mentally as he took hold of the new connection that the spell had created. Normally, even for someone adept at mindmagic (even a telepath), a mental connection with an item was out of the question, not to mention anything like possession. Thankfully, the Hat's main purpose was the use of such a connection so it was already enchanted to accept thoughts from anything nearby. All Harry had to do was establish the connection at a distance, hence the spell. The spell also allowed that he send over thoughts to control the item, rather than directly possessing it, which you had to leave your body to do (this type of possession, called 'puppet possession', was aptly named).

While he was informing the hat what to do (the hat's animated personality was completely displaced by the spell), the rest of the Hall was in chaos. After all, the Hat had never stopped in the middle of a song and it had been singing for nearly a thousand years. Dumbledore and McGonagall had gotten up and were approaching the stool that the hat stood on.

"I'm quite all right," the Hat (under Harry's control) said feebly, "No need to cause such a commotion on my part. I'm old, as I'm sure you know, Albus. Godric Gryffindor himself may have enchanted me but even the strongest cast spells fade over time if not properly taken care of."

"Let me take over your duties if you are unable to do so yourself," Dumbledore said in a concerned voice, "I will take a look at your spells once the feast is over."

"No need, no need," the Hat insisted, "I can last through one more feast. If you'll both kindly return to your seats, I can continue...Just give me a moment to remember what I was going to sing next." He lapsed into silence. "I can't seem to remember...That's fine, I'll just improvise. I have hundreds of years of experience of song making behind me. Everyone back in their seats? That's good. What have I already said? No matter, I'll start at the beginning." And the hat began to sing again:

_Welcome to Hogwarts,_

_Both the old and new,_

_Where so many witches and wizards_

_Have before learned and grew,_

_To the new:_

_I am here to guide you each,_

_To one of the four houses,_

_Which, for you, has most potential to teach._

_There are four houses,_

_Named for founders four,_

_There's Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw,_

_Slytherin, and Gryffindor!_

_Hufflepuff is for the loyal and the fair,_

_Sweet and forgiving, this Founder did care._

Harry glanced at Ginny at the 'forgiving' part but could judge no reaction from her. She did smile but he couldn't tell if it was at the obvious flattery or if she was genuinely pleased at the words.

_Ravenclaw is for the learned and the clever,_

_Always searching for knowledge was this Founder's endeavor. _

_Slytherin is for the ambitious and sly,_

_Secretive but reliable, this founder aimed high._

_Gryffindor is for the righteous and brave,_

_Never a coward, it was only his best that he gave._

_Now all students listen well:_

_Even a Ravenclaw can dislike a book_

_Gryffindors aren't always fearless and daring,_

_A Hufflepuff may not to give their loyalties to you,_

_And Slytherins aren't always dishonest, deceiving _

_Your house does not dictate who you are,_

_And you alone can choose your friends,_

_All houses have their good and bad_

_And this is where my song ends_

Harry could see Dumbledore watching the hat with narrow eyes but knew the Headmaster could hardly interrupt the song. What had caught the old wizard's attention was obvious; other than the fact that the new song was probably deviated wildly from the terms for the song Dumbledore had agreed on, the style of the poem was also completely different from the old ones. It wasn't like Harry or Draco had (in either of their lives) been any sort of expert on poetry and this song had been their best collaboration effort (created in the twenty minutes that Snape gave Draco to get ready before they had left for the school earlier today).

The Slytherin Founder didn't do much for the sorting itself. The enchantments on the hat took control and did most of his work for him, for which he was glad. After all, he couldn't really justify invading the students' privacy by looking into their thoughts and he also knew that any sorting that he might do would be (understandably) a little biased.

Soon the sorting was over and Harry broke his connection with the hat. The object visibly wilted; the old personality would never come back and, with Harry's disappearance from its 'mind', it was, as it had once been, merely an inanimate hat.

It would need a new personality as soon as possible, that much was certain. And another simple animation job would be too risky...The beginnings of a plan was forming in some distant corner of Harry's mind. But it was too soon...He'd need a couple days to set it up and there was no way he'd be able to have it done tonight. Harry just had to trust that the magic from his spell would make sure that any alternate personality that Dumbledore tried to force into the hat wouldn't stick (and then of course that led to the question of whether the hat that Harry knew was really the same personality as the one from Salazar's time). For now, he put the thought out of his head.

"Now that our newest students have tables to sit at, let us all enjoy this wonderful feast," Dumbledore said. Food appeared on the tables and everyone started loading their plates with food enthusiastically.

Forcing himself to pay attention to what was happening around him, Harry was unsurprised to find that not much had changed. Ron had resumed his prattling as if there had been no interruption (despite the large quantities of food he was now shoveling into his mouth), happily oblivious to the lack of attention he was getting from the boy-who-lived, and Hermione was listening him, occasionally adding some fact (but gave herself time to swallow her food beforehand, unlike Ron). Ginny was still trying to catch his eye so he spent some time admiring the ceiling before glancing across the hall.

Draco was looking particularly uncomfortable with some of the murderous glances that some of the Slytherins, mostly children of Death Eaters, were giving him. Harry sent him a somewhat insincere sympathetic look (it was more of a cross between an amused look and a 'deal with it' look), and Draco scowled at him.

"Come sit over here," Harry mouthed. He almost tried to patting the bench next to him in a welcoming way, but that would have put his hand in either Ron's or Hermione's law…and, anyway, it wasn't like Draco would have been able to see it. Draco shook his head stubbornly.

"You come over here," Draco mouthed back. That had been exactly what Harry had been waiting for.

"I'm sorry, Ron, but I have to go," Harry said. He stood up, walked across the hall, and, ignoring the stares, sat down at the Slytherin table next to Draco. "I was wondering when you were going to ask," he told the Gryffindor-Slytherin cheerfully; serving himself some food. Draco mouth fell open in shock and he stared at Harry.

"You-You manipulative Slytherin!" Draco exclaimed. Several people around the Hall murmured indignantly at their savior being called a Slytherin.

Harry grinned at him,

"Not that much. You're just a predictable Gryffindor." This time, there were fewer murmurs, but several people choked on whatever they were eating.

"I'm not predictable!" Draco and Harry said at exactly the same time, in exactly the same, indignant tone of voice.

Harry raised an eyebrow, "You were saying?" Draco glared at him, but, before he could reply, someone interrupted him.

"_Harry_, what are you _doing_?!?" Ron had apparently gotten over his shock, and was marching across the hall towards them.

"Ron, I thought that you, of all people would know what I'm doing," Harry said, in a slow, patronizing voice, usually reserved for small children. At Ron's confused look, he elaborated, "I'm eating, Ron; humans usually do it about three times a day. It usually consists of putting food in your mouth, chewing, and swallowing. At the Gryffindor table, however, males tend to shove it in their mouths as fast as they can, as if they haven't eaten in months. No offense." He glanced sideways at Draco. Ron didn't seem to know what to say to that. He spluttered for a few minutes, tuning steadily redder.

"Is the whole house like that?" Draco asked, turning to Harry with a pleading look.

"I'm afraid so, 'Ric," Harry said, looking at him sadly. Draco made a pained noise and put his head on the table. "Oh come on, don't be like that! They're really not _all_ bad! Neville's a pretty good Gryffindor, right?" Across the hall, Neville turned bright pink.

"Longbottom?" Draco asked apathetically, lifting his head a fraction off the table.

"Come on!" Harry insisted, poking Draco in the ribs, "No wallowing in self-pity. It's the first day back to school; you're supposed to be happy! Okay," he allowed after a short pause, "that did sound a little strange. Still. And I mean, most of 'em are still okay. Remember the twins? Fred and George Weasley? They were _great_ Gryffies!"

"_Weasley_?" Draco asked, more than a bit incredulously this time.

"Hey, most of _them_ are okay too. Come on, it's not as bad as you think."

"I don't know what to do, Sal. My whole life is ruined," Draco whimpered pathetically.

"If it makes you feel better, the hat didn't have much of a choice but to put him in Gryffindor. He wouldn't have lasted two seconds in Slytherin or Ravenclaw, and can you imagine him being in Hufflepuff? Besides, he really, really wanted to go into Gryffindor, and the hat couldn't go against that," Harry said, comfortingly, "He hates studying, can't stand Slytherin, has very little loyalty, and has less cunning than a Flobberworm."

"But why Gryffindor?" Draco moaned.

"You know, I think that Hufflepuff turned out the best," Harry said, thoughtfully, not answering him. He scanned the Hufflepuff table absently but stopped when he saw Zachariah Smith,

"…Or not. Slytherin wouldn't be too bad if it wasn't for all the Dark Lord stuff."

"But what are you doing with Malfoy?!" Ron shouted, having finally regained his voice.

Harry gave him a confused look, and added a tinge of annoyance,

"I'm eating, Ron, I thought we covered that."

"Why are you sitting next to Malfoy?" Ron spat, his face bright red. Harry looked relieved, as if he had just figured out the problem.

"Because he invited me," Harry said, as if it was the simplest thing in the world, "You know, you look alarmingly like Uncle Vernon when your face turns that shade of purple."

"Because he invited you?!? Harry, you could be eating poison!" Ron shouted.

"I'm not eating poison, Ron, I'd be dead if I was," Harry said calmly, not adding the fact that he would be able to tell if there was poison in his food, as he was a skilled potion master.

"Because it could be one of those slow acting poisons!" Ron shouted, his face moving on to purple.

"If he wanted to kill me, I'd be dead by now," Harry said, "And if it was a slow acting poison, I'd be in pain. There really is no point killing your enemy with slow acting poison if they're not in pain as they die. Unless of course, he wanted to take the blame off of himself, in which case I could be eating poison…" He noticed that everyone was staring at him (not that they hadn't been already). Draco raised an eyebrow at him. "It's pretty much all common sense, if you think about it." Harry said defensively, "And anyways...If I _was _eating poison, I'd like to be able to enjoy my final moments in peace and quiet so...If you'd please, you know, get out of my face." He made a shooing motion at Ron.

"Fine!" Ron shouted, "If you want to get yourself killed, I'm not going to stop you!" He turned and stomped back to the Gryffindor table.

"Finally," Harry said, relived, "We can get some peace and quiet now."

"Harry, why are you seated at the Slytherin table?" Someone asked from behind them. Harry whirled around, coming face to face with the Headmaster.

Harry groaned, "'Ric, don't ever let me say that again."

"You should have known better than to say something like that in the first place," Draco said, sighing. Dumbledore cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry, Headmaster, did you want something?" Harry asked in what he _knew_was an unfailingly polite voice, albeit an _annoyingly_ unfailingly polite voice

"Why are you seated at the Slytherin table, Harry?" Dumbledore repeated.

"Is there a problem with the Slytherin table?" Harry asked.

"Yes Harry. You see, you're supposed to sit at your house's table during meals," Dumbledore said.

"Oh...I didn't know that," Harry said pretending to be surprised, "After all, this policy has never been enforced before...I haven't even heard of it and I _did_ read Hogwarts a History this summer. There was _one_ rule a little like that but all that it said was that you had to be invited by a member of the other house to sit at their table during feasts and such but I _was_ invited. Are you sure that there was such a rule?" He tried to put as much concern in the last question as he could. After all, it wasn't as if he could really call his Headmaster senile to his face...But he could imply it. He could almost see most of the Slytherins and a handful of other students sitting back with a bag of popcorn, ready to see what this new power could do, while the rest of the Hall watched with bated breath.

"Of course, it's a newer rule so it might not be in such an old book," Dumbledore lied, rather unconvincingly in Harry's eyes, though most of the students seemed to accept this as an answer. Some, however, didn't; Harry could hear suspicious coughs and whispers around the Great Hall. It made Harry feel sick how his once-almost-mentor could act so much like the incompetent Minister of Magic. "As to why it's never been enforced...There doesn't seem to be much use in promoting inter-house division so this rule is only ever really enforced during major feasts."

"But that doesn't make any..." Harry started to argue but Dumbledore cut him off.

"Now, Harry, let's not argue about such little matters," Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling full force, "Why don't you return to your seat at the Gryffindor table. I'm afraid we're holding up the feast." He attempted a kindly chuckle. Harry scowled; if the people wanted to eat, they could go ahead and eat. Harry wasn't stopping anyone and,_anyway_ _they_ were the ones listening in on his and Draco's conversation.

"But..."

"_Harry_," Dumbledore cut in again, "Please. Let's not..."

Annoyed that Dumbledore wouldn't let him speak his mind, Harry interrupted him,

"Professor," and there was something so cold in his voice that Dumbledore seemed to flinch away slightly, "Please _do_ let me speak my mind. As it is, your pathetic attempts to enforce outdated traditions that only _decrease_ the very inter-house cooperation that you claim to be trying to promote seem not only counter-productive but also extremely foolish. And I cannot remember _ever_ giving you permission to use my first name when speaking to me."

At this, there was a flurry of movement and sound as all around the Hall as people turned to their friends to whisper about this new development. The general opinion of the far side of the Hall seemed to be "Who does he think he is?" from what Harry could hear of the tone. Hearing exact words was impossible from the distance and with all the other noise. From nearby, though, most of the students seemed to be approving. Words were easier to pick out, as most of this was coming from the Slytherin table. Most of it was random words, though he did hear an awed "He sounds just like Snape" and "'Bout time someone but the old man in his place."

Dumbledore, too, seemed dumbstruck by the sudden change,

"No matter what titles or fame you may hold, it's unforgivable for you to speak to your Headmaster in such a way. Fifty points from Gryffindor and a week of detention. You will meet me in my office after the feast to discuss the details." His voice and face were hard and even a little cold but the words behind them were still rather soft.

"On the contrary, _Professor_, I wasn't the one who requested to be given special privileges. In fact if I were you, I would have given myself a months worth of detention at least and taken a hundred points from Gryffindor. Or do you still have hopes that Gryffindor will once again cling to the House Cup?"

"Fifty more points from Gryffindor and another week of detention. If you do not return to your House table at once, I will start speaking of suspension." Finally Dumbledore was speaking with real conviction and anger behind his words.

"Of course, Professor," Harry stood up and gave him a mocking bow, "I suppose I'll see you later, then, Draco."

"Bye," Draco said somewhat mournfully, once again fully surrounded by hostile Slytherins. Now, however, they seemed more interested than hostile. There was, after all, a new powerhouse to keep in mind and none of the Slytherins wanted to turn him against them by upsetting his only known ally (at least so early in the school year). First they would test his power and see if it was just a bluff and then…

Harry, however, found upon returning to the Gryffindor table that he had traded positions with Draco. Shrugging it off and acting unconcerned, he chose a new seat with somewhat fewer hostile looks. He was sure that he wouldn't find bad company between Neville and the group of Gryffindor-sorted first years that he (Evan) had met on the train. The bad part of it was that he was (once again) sitting across from Ginny. She must have moved during the commotion and been able to accurately predict where he would end up. Which, he mused, was more than a bit scary.

"So..." Harry said, breaking the awkward silence, "Anyone want to pass the mashed potatoes?"

The feast after that was…awkward. Conversation with the first years next to him was cheerful enough but he didn't have the same connection with them as he had had as Evan Harrison and he regretted that. Neville didn't seem to know what to think of him (after all, Harry had praised Neville in front of the whole school…But he had also criticized the rest of his house) and Ginny was _still_ trying to catch his eye, looking increasingly annoyed as he ignored her.

Once everyone had stopped eating and settled down, the remainder of the food vanished and Dumbledore stood up to give his speech. Harry prepared himself to get annoyed at the Headmaster; he was sure that it was just one of _those_ speeches.

"Now that your hunger is satisfied, let me satisfy your inquisitive minds. As many of our older students have now realized, we have two new wizards to introduce to our staff, or shall I say two old teachers to welcome back! The Professor Moody of two years ago was, as I'm sure many of you are already aware, an imposter. However, I assure you that this one is the real thing and he apologizes most sincerely for any grief his imposter may have caused." Harry somehow doubted _that_ particular statement. Hogwarts was rather unwelcoming to this teacher; there was even less clapping now than there had been for the imposter (that is to say only Dumbledore clapped an the rest of the school stared).

As with the imposter, Moody seemed to care little about this and drank something from his hip flask. Apparently the imposter's constant drinking wasn't something created from necessity but merely convenience. Actually, the younger Crouch seemed to have done a good job with his research; the resemblance between the movements of the real Moody and Harry's memories of the imposter was uncanny.

"Professor Lupin previously decided to retire because of the commotion that came from parents objecting to a werewolf teacher. However, upon my insistence, he agreed to take up his old post and, as open minded students, I trust that you'll make an educated decision on the danger that he holds to the school. I, myself, assure you all that he is perfectly harmless except for the very night of the full moon. He has, for the past several years, been taking a potion that ensures that he remains harmless, even in wolf-form. However, he is willing to leave the school every full moon for the sake of the peace of mind of all students and their parents." There was a little more clapping for this teacher, since most of the people that he had taught before had liked him. The younger students seemed sort of hesitant but a few applauded politely.

"Professor Lupin and Professor Moody will be both be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts. The younger students will mostly be taught by Professor Lupin and Professor Moody will be teaching the majority of the older students and will be taking over Professor Lupin's classes on the full moon. I'm sure they'll clarify any questions you have on the matter during class time. We are all lucky to have two very experienced wizards with up and I trust that you'll treat them kindly.

"Also, Professor Snape, while continuing as this school's Potions teacher, will be unable to act as Slytherin Head of House." There was instant chaos in the Great Hall. Many at the Slytherin table stood up or shouted out in outrage while the more rowdy at other tables cheered at their hated teacher's misfortune. Within a few seconds they were silenced by the people around them and glares from the Slytherin table. Harry found himself memorizing their faces for pranking targets and forced himself to stop. After all, Snape _wasn't_ Harry's friend. And, anyways, he could see several Slytherins doing the same. "This is because of personal reasons and is entirely his own choice."

"Yeah, right," Harry spat under his breath. Oops, had that been out loud? Ginny was looking at him again.

"Professor Moody will be taking over these responsibilities until either Professor Snape is able to resume his position or a Head of Slytherin is formally decided," Dumbledore continued, oblivious of his interruption. There was more outrage from the Slytherins but Dumbledore continued over them, "As there are some concerns on student safety regards to a recent increase of attacks in the magical world, Hogwarts has been looking to hire some security. However, the minister's refusal to officially recognize any threat has left us unable to do so. We hope to introduce ministry aurors as guards later in the year but until then, Hogwarts is still well-protected by her wards and the teachers and prefects will regularly patrol the corridors to ensure that nothing happens. There is no need for any alarm.

"Finally, all students please remember that the Forbidden Forest is called that for a reason and no students are allowed near it. The ever-growing list of banned objects is still posted on Mr. Filch's office door and now that I have said all that needs to be said, let me wish you all a pleasant year. Off to bed now. Mr. Potter, please meet me in my office shortly." Harry rolled his eyes (was it really necessary for Dumbledore to announce it to the entire school?) and took his time in getting up.

_Must think of ways to kill…No…Must think of ways to annoy the old man…to death…NO…No dead bodies…Must think of ways to annoy the old man…to…insanity? Isn't he already insane? Well…Must think of ways to annoy the old man to really bad insanity…Or something…_

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Harry strolled down the corridor casually, acting more like he was walking to the Great Hall to eat than walking to the Headmaster's office to discuss punishment. He knew that Dumbledore was probably watching him and it would probably make him mad but, hey, wasn't that the point?

Draco had met him at the Gryffindor table as Harry was trying to figure out whether or not to 'forget' to go to the Headmaster's office, despite the Headmaster's announcement. Harry had agreed to meet the other boy in a little over half an hour and had also set a location no meet at. In the end, he also ended up deciding to meet the Headmaster, just because it would be more troublesome if the Dumbledore (who Harry thought had more free time than he ought to have) came looking for him.

Reaching the Headmaster's office, he paused. Harry didn't know the current password and, though he was pretty sure he could open the door without it, he also didn't want to show Dumbledore his hand so early. Besides, it would be a little more than a waste of effort.

After deciding this, Harry was left standing outside for a good ten minutes and, right when he was ready to walk off, the stone gargoyle jumped aside to allow entry. Scowling at it, he gave it a surreptitious kick as he walked past. However much he might have wanted to he could not, of course, do the same to the Headmaster, even if it was Dumbledore that Harry was really mad at.

"Harry!" Dumbledore welcomed his student but stopped at Harry's cold glare, "Excuse me, I mean Mr. Potter," he now adopted a rather pitiful voice, "Why must you continue this facade? This isn't you, Ha…Mr. Potter."

"I came here, Headmaster, to discuss my detention. Nothing more," Harry said in a tone that would have had any of the other Founders looking around for cover to dive for.

Dumbledore lapsed into silence as if giving a profound matter very deep thought. Harry looked around and saw the Sorting Hat, sitting on the shelf as if nothing was wrong. The Headmaster did, after all, have a full year to figure out how to reanimate the thing. Still, Harry couldn't count on Dumbledore's procrastination. He'd set his plan into motion as soon as possible.

"It seems to me," Dumbledore said slowly, "That you are being overly difficult. Still, there is no need to punish you harshly when we have so little time on our hands. You will be spending your detentions for the next two weeks practicing Occlumency with Professor Snape, the same time and place as your previous lessons. I trust that your summer has been a productive one," Harry was not guilty to know that it hadn't been (but then again, he had _remembered_ a lot of Occlumency so it had been productive after all), "and if, when I test you at the end of the two weeks, you can passably block any intrusion, your lessons will be over. If not, you will continue under the pretense of 'remedial Potions'. You are dismissed. Sleep well."

Harry stood up and left without saying a word. He wasn't sure if he was glad or not about this new development. It was likely that he would have been forced to take the Occlumency lessons either way but he still didn't want to be tutored in something he already knew, especially not something as intrusive as Occlumency and especially not by Snape.

He mused his way back to the Gryffindor dormitories, which he found unusually chaotic. It was, after all, the night of the feast, and usually everyone would be asleep by now. Ron and the other Gryffindor sixth years were waiting up for him, the Weasley puffed up with righteous anger.

"What intentions do you have towards my sister?" Ron demanded the second Harry stepped through the door of their room.

"Pardon?" Harry asked before making the connection. Ron's sister was Ginny and Ginny was Helga so that meant…

"You just missed her," and here Seamus Finnigan produced something alarmingly like a leer, "She was waiting up for you."

"Here?" Harry asked in his best 'bored and uncaring' voice. Internally, he was annoyed; he was in a hurry and he really didn't want to deal with this right now. He had either Ginny's lack of tact or revenge to blame and Harry was sure that it was the latter. After all, none of the founders were stupid and Helga, though a peacemaker, had a fierce temper when annoyed or insulted and her reincarnation didn't lack a temper either. So what if he had been avoiding her all evening? That was no reason to set the Gryffindors on him.

Harry turned his back to the Gryffindors under the pretense of rummaging through the trunk for bedclothes. In reality, he cast a mild sleep charm over the room to make the other occupants feel drowsy.

"I really don't know what she was doing here," Harry said, his back still turned, "I haven't talked to her all summer and I barely said a word to her all day. You were there, so you should know that. Maybe she thought I was avoiding her or something. I really don't care. It's late and I'm tired." Before he even had to pretend to change into his bedclothes, the other four Gryffindors were in bed and asleep.

Walking over to his bed, he took a good look at the charm that he had noticed earlier. Carefully checking to see that there were no spells around the charm that would alert the caster when the charm was set off, he gently touched the charm with his magic. The charm unfurled and the words 'we need to talk' became visible in glowing yellow on Harry's sheets. The 'talk' was bolded and underlined and Harry eyed it apprehensively before making the words vanish with a wave of his hand.

Harry _did_, after all, have things to do. He would talk to the Hufflepuff Founder later.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Dim light from flickering torches illuminated a stooped figure moving slowly down the corridor. Uneven footsteps echoed softly and then loudly and then suddenly stopped as the man reached his destination. Eyes glanced around furtively before the man entered the dark room. Again, he glanced around quickly and then, seemingly satisfied, he pulled his wand out and...

"Good evening, Professor," a quiet voice came from within the darkness. The effect was instantaneous. The man gave a violent start and without pausing for an instant, sent a beam of bright silver light towards the voice and, in almost the same gesture, lit the fireplace. Alastor Moody was now visible in the doorway but the chair by the fire, the place the voice had come from, was now empty. The ex-Auror tensed; he was sure that not even a second had passed between the greeting and his spell, yet the spell (who's whole purpose was to bind someone to a place, Moody had been mindful of Dumbledore's requests of only non-lethal spells when he had cast it) seemed to have missed it's target.

A second later, Harry Potter's head poked out from behind the chair,

"Scaaaary. I suppose those are the reflexes of a trained Auror."

Moody's eyes narrowed and he didn't relax. This person in front of him might look like Potter, but there was no way that the Harry Potter that he knew could have gone from sitting on the chair to behind it in no time flat. And the person had definitely been sitting on the couch instead of merely waiting behind it; his eye had caught a glimpse of the person before the magic in the spell had eclipsed the person's aura.

"You're not Potter."

"Yes I am," the other person said in a voice that sounded half offended and half amused.

Moody watched the other with narrowed eyes before barking out a question,

"Where did I last see you?"

"That's hardly a difficult question. Well, the last time we talked was at the end of my fifth year, when the Dursleys picked my up from the platform, but I'm sure dozens of people saw both of us. The last time you saw me was our last day in Diagon Alley, right before we left back to Snape's place."

"What did I show you during the party that celebrated the new Gryffindor prefects?"

"An old photo of the last generation of the Order of the Crispy Chick…I mean, the Order of the Phoenix that included my parents and a bunch of other dead people."

"Where did you learn to hide your aura?" Try as he might, Moody still couldn't read it which was supposed to be impossible with his magical eye. The only time that he had seen it was that flash in the dark and the little of which he had seen had looked somehow different from when he had last seen the boy…When he had been guarding the Dursleys' house. How could a person's, even a teenage wizard's, aura change so drastically in so little time? Auras naturally changed over time as a person's magic shifted and grew affinities but the process generally took years, only a little faster for someone going through magical puberty. The only explanation was that this person in front of him wasn't Potter but that also seemed impossible.

"That's a secret," Harry said airily. Moody stared at him for a minute before giving up on having his question answered.

"Don't ever come into my room uninvited; I could have sent you to the hospital wing by accident. You're lucky Dumbledore warned me over and over not to use any really nasty spells, I thought…Well, I didn't expect anyone in my room."

Harry laughed,

"Not even Slytherins move that fast; they're a house, they take some time to organize. I don't think you'll see the first of 'em 'till midnight. Which brings me to the reason that I'm here. I don't think you need me to tell you this but right now, most of Slytherin either hates you or extremely distrusts you. You need help."

"Who could help? If I tried to control the Slytherins, they'd just become more uncontrollable and anyone that interfered would be automatically considered on my side. And what reason would a Gryffindor have to care about the politics of Slytherin?"

"More reasons than you think. Were you even a Slytherin? No, don't answer that. It doesn't matter; what matters is that you're an authority figure chosen by Dumbledore. Admit it; the Slytherins would eat you alive. You _need_ my help."

"_Your_ help? Potter, you're a _Gryffindor_! What makes you think that you can help the situation at all?!"

"Not much by myself. But I know how Slytherin works a lot better than you do. If nothing else, I can give you enough advice that the Slytherins won't start plotting ways to kill you without taking the blame."

"Convince me."

"First of all, you have to make it clear that, thought you are here under Dumbledore's orders, you have absolutely _no intentions_ of reporting _anything_ you learn to him. Make this clear, no matter what it takes. And if you _do_ have _any_ intentions to tell Dumbledore _anything_," Harry's voice made it absolutely clear that _yes_, this _was_ a threat, "You'd better remedy that right away. I'm here to help prevent your murder only because I think that you're passably intelligent."

Moody snorted,

"I'm not an idiot, boy; Dumbledore won't hear anything from me."

"Don't act on anything that you hear, either. If someone comes to you because they need to talk, _listen_ to them. The trick is not to understand the choices they make instead of getting angry (even if you here that the person in front of you has just accepted the Dark Mark). In fact, if you can, make it known that, unofficially, Snape is still the Head of Slytherin. It helps that you didn't take over the rooms traditionally belonging to the Slytherin Head (but then I don't think there would be any way for me to help if you had)."

Pausing in his speech, Harry glanced at his watch and frowned,

"Well, that's it for tonight," he stood up and headed for the door, "That should last you until I can see you tomorrow. Oh, and I'll try to make Slytherin understand your position at least a little. I _do_ at least have _some_ influence in Slytherin and if I don't, I will soon. Goodnight Professor."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"What took you so long?"

"Had to talk to Dumbledore, get back to the Gryffindor Tower, make sure that people noticed me come back and didn't notice me leave, dodge Ginny, and then take care of some business," Harry complained, sitting down on top of a desk, "Half an hour wasn't enough." They were in one of Hogwarts many deserted classrooms; this one had, very many years ago, been the very room Rowena Ravenclaw had taught Transfiguration in.

"Business…Moody?" Draco guessed, "But why Ginny?"

Harry glanced at his friend in surprise,

"You didn't notice? She's Helga. Who, apparently wants to _talk_."

"Of course she does! She hasn't seen you in a good…Um…Long time. Come to think of it, I don't even know how old she was when she died…It was after me so…"

"It doesn't matter," Harry said impatiently, "I'm not about to talk about things like that in the middle of the Gryffindor common room!"

"Then you should have taken her here," Draco rolled his eyes, "It sounds to me like you're just avoiding her."

There was a tense silence.

Draco gave in first and changed the subject,

"Who's Rowena, then?"

"Luna Lovegood but I don't think she remembers yet. Her birthday's not until fall, so…"

"Not fair, she's the only one of us who got sorted into her own house!"

"Well, yeah, but…In Ravenclaw, Luna's kind of an outcast. So I think her situation is sort of worse than ours. Well, most Slytherins hate Harry Potter and most Gryffindors hate Draco Malfoy so maybe not. Helga's situation definitely turned out the best."

"I suppose this just shows that none of us are made up of only the specific traits we chose for our houses. Does that make us hypocrites?" Draco asked.

"Not really…I mean, I was even told I would do well in Slytherin but I asked not to be put there. And you already knew you wanted to be a Slytherin before you put on the hat, right? Ginny also had similar pressure from her family to get into Gryffindor. Anyways," Harry smirked, "I bet if we wrote 'Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin were hypocrites' somewhere in the Great Hall, people would get _really _mad."

"Ooh, really? Let's do that then," Draco was bouncing in his chair.

Harry glanced at his watch,

"It _is_ kind of late, so let's not stay up all night pranking, okay? We have to wake up early tomorrow for classes."

"Um…"

Harry sighed and prepared himself for impending doom or, at least, an impending headache. He recognized that voice for all the trouble it had gotten them into in the past. Draco was, no doubt, about to suggest something stupid and guilt Harry into joining his crazy scheme. Or something like that.

"Yes?"

"Um, well…Did you happen to notice that Professor Snape was looking kind of…Unwell during dinner today?"

"Actually, I was very determined to not look at him at all, so no," Harry answered truthfully, "What do you mean by unwell?"

"Um…Pale? Showing signs of being in extreme pain?"

"And Madam Pomfrey, Dumbledore, and all the other teachers didn't notice or didn't do anything?" Despite any recent resentment of the man, the tiniest bit of concern was worming its way into Harry's stomach.

"Madam Pomfrey kept sending him worried glances but she was at the other end of the table. I saw her talk to him at the end of the feast but I don't think he was listening to whatever she said. Dumbledore was ignoring it and I don't think anyone else noticed."

"And you want to…what, visit him? What do you think that we could do to help?"

"I don't know!" Draco half-shouted, frustrated, "But between the two of us, we know more magic than most of the school, right? There must be _something_ we can do!"

Harry sighed again and stood up,

"He'll be staying in my old rooms, then?"

Draco blinked and thought for a second,

"Yeah." Reconciling their memories of the 'old' castle with the 'new' one was slightly strange what with overlaps and the small changes that the castle went through over time. Suddenly a deserted classroom that Draco had passed every day on his way to various classes had some deep significance to him; it was rather unnerving. Or, in this case, his mentor and Head of House's room where all his fellow Slytherins had for years been going to for advice turned out to have once been his best friend's room which he had regularly pranked.

Putting his hand on the stone wall, Harry opened a door between the wall of Rowena's old classroom and the corridor outside of the rooms traditionally belonging to the Slytherin Head of House. Even though it should have been at least a ten minute walk as the crow flies (or, more appropriately "as the ghost glides" or something similar), the manipulation of space was simple using a combination of the Parseltongue passwords Salazar had put up around the school and Hogwarts' own willingness to help her Founder; either alone could probably have accomplished the task.

"It's not fair," Draco whined, "You have all these cool Parseltongue passwords to get everywhere and I can't speak Parseltongue."

Harry rolled his eyes,

"You could probably do it without the Parseltongue, if you wanted to. I mean, you're still a Founder."

Harry knocked but only gave their Potion's Professor a couple second's courtesy before opening the door via a Parseltongue password. He seriously doubted the man was in the habit of answering his door, anyways.

Snape, as it turned out, was in no condition to open the door. Harry took one look at the former spy clutching his arm and summed up his thoughts into one word:

"Idiot."

He was across the room in an instant and, before Snape had time to react, pulled his cloak-sleeve roughly up so that it uncovered his Dark Mark. It wasn't a pretty sight; the area around the mark was red and raw, even blistering, and the mark itself looked as if it had been recently branded (the Muggle way).

"I'll need," He addressed the air behind him, "Snake venom. The stronger the better, but anything magical will do. I prefer basilisk or runespoor myself but I might have a recent affinity for _Ophidia Argenteus_ so if he has that, that'll work as well. Also a 'light' component with strong healing powers…Phoenix tears will probably be best (he might even have some from Fawkes) or Anima Water, if they even use that any more (I sure haven't seen it in any texts)."

"Got it," Draco's head popped through the doorway and then vanished quickly (hall outside the room)? "Um...Sal? His ingredients are almost as messy as yours...Except half of them aren't written in Parseltongue. And I can only recognize phoenix tears by sight."

"Yeah, yeah, I'll get them then; I'll probably need more than two if this is as bad as it looks," Harry said, sighing. "And _you_," he suddenly addressed Snape, "Don't so much as _move_ from that spot until I get back. 'Ric, you make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. You should have experience dealing with reckless _Gryffindors_." He pushed his professor into a chair and walked away. Draco winced at his friend's noticeable anger as Harry brushed past him on his way.

"Why should..." Snape started but was cut off by Draco, who had made his way over to the chair that Harry had forced Snape into, seeming almost prepared to physically restrain his Head of House if necessary.

"Don't even. If he's gets any madder...Well, let's just not make him madder, okay?"

Harry walked back into the room with his arms full of various potions ingredients, half of which Snape knew were extremely rare and the other half so obscure that he didn't even recognize apart from having seen them in the furthest corners of various shelves. He opened his mouth, half to protest and half to ask what Potter thought he was doing with so many random ingredients but Harry interrupted him.

"I don't know _what_ you're talking about, 'Ric," Harry said with what the other two could tell was obviously fake cheer, as he gathered a couple random instruments from around Snape's work area, "Mine was an organized mess, his is just a mess!" He paused for a minute to check over what he had gathered before pulling a silver dagger out of his sleeve and slapping it down on the table next to a bottle of something that was a shade of green that, in Draco's opinion, would make you ill just by looking at it.

"And yet you found everything right away," Draco said, rolling his eyes.

"Because I _can_ recognize all the ingredients by sight, idiot," Harry had somehow gotten a small table when the others weren't watching and was busy mixing ingredients together in two separate bowls. There were no cauldrons in the room but Harry didn't need any (this wasn't technically a potion just a sort of...mixture of magical substances for the best and most balanced result without a brewing process). Pulling a dead snake out of a dusty bottle, he wrinkled his nose and commented on the age before grinding it to powder (rather viciously, Draco thought) and tossing it into one of the bowls. Snape tried to object to the mess (and, anyways, did Potter even know what he was doing?) but was ignored.

"Done!" Harry all but sang, "Here, drink up." He handed the bowl to Snape with an almost manic glee, obviously expecting the other to drink it.

Snape looked at Harry incredulously,

"Why would I consume any substance that _you_ would willingly give me?"

It was this time for Harry to be openly incredulous,

"Do I have any reason to poison you? I'm trying to _help_ you _idiot_! Do you think that the Dark mark will come off with a wave of my hand?"

"What makes you think that you can do anything against the Dark Lord's magic?" Snape sneered.

"What makes you think that I can't?" Harry's voice could only be described as deadly and Snape's fingers itched for his wand, "You've seen me do it before."

Draco grabbed the bowl and had its contents down his Head of House's throat faster than the other two could blink. Snape choked and spluttered (half because he hadn't expected it and half because of the horrible taste) while Harry blinked at his friend, clearly not expecting the interference.

"Thank you, 'Ric," Harry said pleasantly, once he got over his mild shock.

"What are friend's for?" Draco asked in response, "I've ended up doing that more times than I can count. I think your methods of convincing patients that you're here to _help_ instead of poison them could use a little cleaning up."

Harry just shrugged in vague sort of gesture and once again pulled back Snape sleeve, spreading the (slightly thicker) contents of the second bowl over the Dark Mark.

"How _dare_…" Snape began, turning to glare at Draco but he was once again interrupted. Shadows sprang up all over the room and cold, very strong wind sprang up out of nowhere, even though they were surrounded by stone walls. Robes flapped and Draco grabbed bookshelf, which seemed to be heavy enough to resist the wind. Snape, too, grabbed the nearest piece of furniture, but the combined weight of the Professor and the rather solid chair made this a little unnecessary. Harry seemed entirely unaffected.

Hissing came from the center of the storm (for it really couldn't be called anything but that). Snape had first dismissed this as the wind but as it continued to grow louder, it began to form words that he could easily understand. This, then, was Parseltongue; another one of his abilities that Potter had stole from him upon returning to his proper time.

-Who _dares _interrupt my master?_- _

With something approaching horror, Snape realized that the sound was coming from his own arm.

-Nagini,- Harry sounded, if anything, annoyed, -What rights do you have to answer a Call meant for another? Your master disrespects me greatly by not speaking to me himself. You will get him, now, or I will correct this slight on my honor in my own way. Your execution is inevitable but it is by your own hands that you decide how much you suffer beforehand.-

There was some silence from the Dark Mark and then,

-Who are you to threaten my familiar?- The voice of Voldemort, even distorted by the snake language, made both Draco and Snape twitch.

-Who are you to declare yourself Dark Lord and, in my name and the names of hundreds of others murder innocent people?- Harry challenged, - Do not think either you kind or your ancestors appreciate what you have done in their names.-

There was a pause,

-You aren't Potter.-

These words, so similar to the ones that he had heard earlier from Moody, made Harry laugh before giving a different answer than before,

-Did you think Harry Potter could reach you in such a way? Harry Potter is not the only Parseltongue that wants you dead. You have ignited hatred in many people and you will pay for it.-

-And this man, Snape, is under your protection? What obligations do you have to a double-crossing traitor, who is friends with no man or woman?-

Harry laughed again,

-Who are you to decide who has friends and who doesn't? And what do I care who I have obligations to when I am willing to devote my time and effort to ensuring your demise? This man has access to a great deal of magic. You are leeching off this magic and eventually, when all this magic runs out, he will die. When that happens, your source of power will disappear but until then, you will be more powerful than usual. So, cut the source. Make sure that you can't have this power and the problem is solved. If I save his life in the process, and I ensure that an obstacle in your path stays alive, the better for me. An enemy of an enemy is, after all, a friend.-

-If you can spare his life so easily, why are you speaking to me? You will not beg me to spare his life?-

-Hardly,- Harry said coldly, -If you were half the wizard you pretend you are, you will notice that the connection has already been cut, and all that is left is for me to sever the magic that allows us to converse, and Severus Snape will be free from your power. I merely wished to inform you that you are a disgrace to all Parselmouths and anyone of Slytherin blood or house. I will see you dead, Riddle.- And he cut the remainder of the connection. In an instant, the shadows and wind all disappeared. Snape looked in awe (though he would later deny it) at his now unmarked arm.

Harry wobbled slightly, but kept his balance. There was some silence.

"So, what did you say?" Draco asked, not having understood a word of the conversation.

"Said I'd kill him, tell you later," Harry said shortly, not having the energy to say very much. Technically, the use of two different potions made what just happened a ritual (albeit a sort of tame one) and rituals were always very draining.

"Oh," Draco said. There really wasn't much else to day.

Wanting to get away from Snape, Harry stood to leave, and then froze, staring at a point on the wall,

"'Ric, do you see…" His head jerked up as his eyes traced some sort of movement and, in a split second, he had grabbed a dagger out of his sleeve and thrown it at the wall. Its tip sank a good inch or two into the wall, enchantments on the blade allowing it to slice even through the stone. However, when Draco looked up, not even a second later, there was nothing pinned under the blade. But Harry's (or at least Salazar's) aim with a throwing knife was flawless and he had yet to follow up with another one, as he would if he _had_ missed.

Draco looked to his friend, who was looking towards his dagger with a strange expression,

"I don't suppose you saw…" Harry didn't finish the question.

"Saw _what_?" Draco asked impatiently.

"There was a…_shadow_ on the wall. Except there was nothing in this room that could have cast a shadow like that. It was shaped strangely…Kind of like a human, only it was kind of…off. When I started to say something it moved and then when I threw my dagger, it kind of disappeared. I don't know," he shrugged, "Maybe I'm just being paranoid."

Draco didn't think that Harry was being paranoid. At least not overly so; whenever Salazar had been paranoid, it had later been proven that he had had good cause for being so,

"Do you know what it might have been?"

"I'd almost say it was a Scelus omen, except it didn't look anything like one. Because they're the things you find most commonly around places that are exposed to a lot of magic at once, like what I just did. I mean, there are a lot more…I think I'll have to research it." Harry definitely looked somehow unsettled.

"Have you ever seen anything like it?" Draco asked, unnerved just because it took something big do unnerve Harry.

"I…Think I did. When I…left," Harry chose his wording carefully, since Snape was still in the room (because Snape was _sure_ to react positively to Harry saying "When I died), "did you, the other two, or even anyone else in the school mention seeing anything strange? A suspicious shadow?"

"I don't remember one. But it was a long time, and there were lots of strange rumors; I didn't hear them all. You'll have to ask them. Why?" Draco was definitely unnerved by now.

"I thought I saw something like that when I left. Behind you three," Harry noticed the expression on his friend's face and forced a smile, "But I'm sure that it's nothing. If you're worried about it, we can at least set up some anti-Magical Creature wards or something." He went and got his dagger out of the wall and carefully examined the stone around where the dagger had been, "I don't see anything weird. Maybe I killed it. Anyways, let's get to bed; it's late and I'm exhausted. We can talk about," he glanced sideways at Snape, "absolutely innocent things tomorrow." Which meant, of course, pranks.

However much that Harry protested that it was probably nothing, he still took the amulet that he had given Draco for his birthday and added more than a few new protection spells to it before they parted ways (and Draco _knew_ that his friend had already put at least the basic anti-dark creature charms on it already).

Both boys went to bed troubled.

Snape, who was as tired from the ordeal as the boy who had cured him, stayed in the chair for quite some time, staring after them thoughtfully. Potter had demonstrated magic far beyond his level and had, if Snape could make himself examine his formerly repressed memories, been doing so for some time. He had also saved his life.

And there was, of course, the fact that both boys made allusions to events that Snape was sure hadn't occurred (unless the four days they had spent with the werewolf had been more eventful than it had appeared). Perhaps his visit to Snape's sixth year hadn't been Potter's only time-traveling experience this summer? And Snape still had yet to know the cause in the first place. Potter couldn't do magic and any potions that would cause anything near that effect, Snape would have thought far out of Potter's range. But if he acknowledged what Potter had just done and what Potter had said and done in the past…

Snape, too, went to bed troubled.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

It's really not _that_ much of a cliffhanger. Kind of. Well, it's sort of a long chapter (just a little, you know, only more than three times my usual chapter length), so I hope everyone's happy! It didn't seem right to split it up, since it was only one day. Also, it came pretty soon (if you ignore the fact that when I started writing DA, this was my normal pace) and I'm staying up 'till over three in the morning writing this when I wanted to read…Well, I'm doing this for all of you! I'm getting more and more back into this story, so I think you can hope for the next chapter soon, but I also don't have any promises like I did last chapter. Also have a new Salazar!Harry lurking in the back of my mind in replacement (but not rewrite) for Tainted Betrayal by I refuse to acknowledge it until I finish Dark Angel (so there, persistent muses!)

I think that this is going to be something of a nightmare for me; introducing both Moody and Moony in the same place at the same time was hard enough but classes with them? I can't keep their names straight. I got them mixed up, what, five times? Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, please review (it keeps the author happy)!


	21. First Day Back

Between Deathly Hallows and school (and my muses saying "ooh, look at _that_ shiny fandom over there!") this chapter took a lot longer than I hoped. Sorry everyone! But I'm working double-speed now so wish me luck on getting the next chapter out soon!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty-One: First Day Back **

According to the ceiling of the Great Hall, the morning was cloudy and rather windy. Of course, several minutes ago strawberry-flavored bubbles had been drifting down from cotton-candy colored clouds (though nobody had tried eating any, to Harry's slight disappointment) and, in another couple minutes, it would start snowing. If anyone bothered to check a window they'd get a face full of dazzling sunlight; the day was all blue sky and bright sun, a boring way to start a school year in Harry's opinion.

The current inhabitants of the Great Hall weren't really enjoying the ceiling's theatrics but Harry assumed that the later risers would at least notice the show and was saving the best for them. Only five other students had bothered waking up so early on the first day of school: three Ravenclaws with their noses stuck deep in their books and their hair full of bubbles, a sleeping Hufflepuff, and a Gryffindor who was staring at the sky through glazed eyes.

That left, of course, the Slytherin table all to Harry. The former-Slytherin all but skipped over to it and claimed his seat by setting down his book bag with a flourish that was also unappreciated by his fellow students. He stuck his tongue out childishly at the Headmaster's seat (so far unoccupied) as he sat down and pulled out his book, a semi-Dark book in Parseltongue. It was one of those books that were only legal because nobody knew of its existence and Harry had another copy in his trunk, just in case Dumbledore confiscated this one. Disregarding and challenging authority? Maybe a little.

Harry absentmindedly took a bite of toast as he read and discovered that his strawberry-flavored bubbles really didn't taste that great on toast; the bubbles that had been floating down from the sky just minutes ago had drenched all the toast with the flavor. He put his toast down calmly (a habit of Salazar's that Harry took full advantage of was the 'I meant to do that' attitude that he used when he made a mistake in public) and wondered if he could trick Draco into trying some if he hid the one he had taken a bite out of.

He read for about an hour, trying to find anything that mentioned the various creatures that can be attracted to magical rituals but all he found was a vague mention of Scelus omens and the mention that there were several types of creatures that fed on magic that might also be attracted to rituals. There was no mention of what these creatures might be and Harry was forced to admit that there would be nothing more in this book. Indexes were Muggle inventions and you would only find them in the newer wizarding books; Harry would have to go through all his books page-by-page to try and find any mention of the shadow that he had seen the previous night. And then, of course, he would have to try the library.

Closing his book and tucking it into his bag, Harry looked up to find that the Great Hall was now more than half-full and that it was raining frogs. Several people around the Hall had umbrellas and it seemed as if the house-elves had put up a shield around the food so that it wouldn't be affected by whatever fell out of the sky. Harry checked the tables again, slightly bored. The Ravenclaw table was almost full and both the Slytherin and Hufflepuff tables were half-full (the Slytherins so far seemed to have chosen seats on the far ends of the table, staying far away from Harry, who had chosen a seat in the middle), while the Gryffindor table was almost empty. Harry remembered the scrambles for showers and cloths after oversleeping that were common in that house and wasn't surprised.

The teachers appeared to be trying to fix the ceiling. What with the Weasley twins being gone and the ceiling having been enchanted by the Founders themselves, they seemed to think it was some sort of charms malfunction rather than a prank. Harry amused himself by watching them for several minutes before pulling his book out again and beginning to read, this time for enjoyment rather than research. A few minutes later he was distracted by Draco's arrival.

"You have bubbles in your hair," the blond commented dryly, sitting down next to Harry. A frog landed on the table between them and then hopped away hurriedly.

"Shut up and have some toast or something," Harry said, handing the other a piece of toast without bothering to look up from his book.

Draco obligingly took a bite and then made a face,

"Ew." Harry hid a smirk. The toast had been on the table since before the house-elves' charms to protect he food, since nobody was around Harry to have eaten it and Harry had managed to stop the house-elves from taking it away. It was thoroughly soaked with the remains of the strawberry-flavored bubbles, not to mention the other random things that had floated down from the ceiling before the house-elves thought to set up shields.

Thunder rumbled ominously and Harry glanced up before pulling an umbrella out of his bag. He tapped it with his wand to enlarge it and then attached it to the table with a spell, ignoring Draco's comment of "If you had that all along, why are you just taking it out now?"

"You know," Draco commented suddenly after a few minutes of silence, "It's even kind of cold in here. You really went overboard on this rainy weather stuff, didn't you?" He seemed unfazed by the fact that it had started raining orange juice.

"It's too sunny outside," Harry said, pouting, "I have to stop working on an experimental potion I was hoping to get done until it's cloudy for at least five days in a row."

"But its good Quidditch weather," Draco pointed out reasonably.

"Not when it's too hot. And I don't mind playing in cloudy weather as long as it's not freezing or so windy that I can't fly strait." Toast started floating down from the sky, landing in the puddles of orange juice and were quickly followed by large drops of marmalade and assorted jams. Harry noticed that Dumbledore's beard was gathering a rather colorful assortment of sticky foodstuffs and whispered a spell to make the jam fall down faster than before.

They continued talking for a while. Eventually the teachers gave up on finding out what was wrong with the ceiling and moved to shelter (those who hadn't already). As soon as Dumbledore moved under the large teachers' umbrella, Harry cast a spell on him so that anything falling from the ceiling would be drawn to his beard, despite the shelter. The spell was a simple one that would disintegrate once the man left the Great Hall but Harry was pleased to see, at least for now, that teachers in the line of fire were scooting away from the Headmaster.

Snape was heading towards the Slytherin table looking angry and Harry thought for a minute that Snape was coming to yell at him (the newly-former Slytherin Head had been looking suspiciously at Harry all morning) before realizing that he was merely handing out the schedules. It should have been Moody's job but Harry would be the last person to complain about that; perhaps Moody had taken Harry's advice to heart. It was nice to see things going so right so easily, for once.

As soon as Draco got his schedule (Snape ignoring Harry's presence at the Slytherin table the whole time), Harry stole it from him and looked at it himself. Gryffindors and Slytherins shared NEWT Potions first and then had no more classes for the rest of the day; slightly disappointing but not surprising.

"Hey!" Draco protested Harry's theft, "Give that back! Shouldn't you be getting your own, anyways?"

Harry looked somewhat skeptically at the Gryffindor table,

"I suppose you're right," he muttered. Despite his words, the Slytherin-turned-Gryffie didn't move towards the other table.

"Go on," Draco said, snatching his schedule back from Harry, "And if you hurry, you can get back here and we can go to Potions together. If not, the Gryffies might be able to keep you until the bell rings and then they'll probably escort you to class, too."

"Fine, fine," Harry said, standing up, "I'll be back in a minute."

He made a beeline for Professor McGonagall, who started to give him a lecture abut his behavior towards the Headmaster but was interrupted by students eager for their schedules. After collecting his timetable, he headed straight back feeling rather pleased with himself, having both accomplished his mission and somehow managed to drop a note in Ginny's oatmeal with nobody else seeing.

And then they were off to Potions.

NEWT Potions, Harry found, wasn't all that much different than regular Potions except that the class was a lot smaller. With four Slytherins and three Gryffindors (not counting Draco and Harry) the class had a grand total of nine students. This was because that most of the ingredients that the students were now handling were highly dangerous and the potions they were making were now extremely difficult; some couldn't even be made in the time span of one class. And, of course, very few students could meet Snape's high standards (even if they had wanted to). Ideally, the teacher would be able to give each student more attention than in a full-sized class and, hopefully, pass on more knowledge to individual students.

Snape took a few seconds to magic instructions on the blackboard, gave a brief warning about more the more violate potion ingredients (which ended up sounding more like a threat), and disappeared behind his desk to grade potions essays. Every once so often he would get up and walk around the classroom, hovering over students' cauldrons while making disapproving noises. All of this was done with a perpetual scowl (though Harry rather thought that was because of his own presence). Harry was ignoring the tense atmosphere and chatting happily with Draco but even so…

_We can't all be potions prodigies,_ Harry thought with a twinge of annoyance, _He should be taking the time to _teach_ them something instead of sitting around waiting for their cauldrons to blow up!_ He sighed and stared broodingly at the glowing purple potion bubbling away in his cauldron. It was far from the pink of the potion they were _supposed_ to be making but, luckily, Snape hadn't come near his cauldron yet; the professor was either avoiding Harry or completely ignoring him.

"A zero for today, Weasley," Snape had stopped in front of Ron's cauldron. They were working individually today and without Hermione as a partner, Ron's potion was doomed to fail, "Put the powdered Diricaw claw down and clean up your mess of a working space."

"What for?!" shouted Ron, face flushed with anger. Snape opened his mouth to say something, but a lazy drawl from across the room interrupted him.

"Because, Ron, had you addedthe Diricaw claw and then the powdered _root_ of neverbloom you have at your table instead of powdered _seed_ of neverbloom after adding your foxthorn four steps too late, the potion would have exploded with such a force that everyone in the room would be in so many pieces Madam Pomfrey wouldn't be able to put us back together or, if someone was extremely lucky, extremely injured."

"Show off," Draco muttered. Harry grinned and dropped a bowl of chopped…something into his potion, which immediately turned a murky orange.

"Ten points from Gryffindor for interrupting a teacher, Potter," Snape said, walking back up to the front of the classroom.

Harry grinned at Draco,

"See? Since I have a teacher who hates Gryffindors, especially me, whereas there are teachers who distrust Slytherin, but won't take off to many points. Face it, God, the house cup's Slytherin's.

Draco scowled at him,

"Well you don't have to rub it in!"

"Yes I do," Harry said, sprinkling a white powder into his cauldron. The potion became to froth and, within seconds, it shot a humongous stream of ice-cold potion into the air. In such a small classroom, the potion quickly hit the ceiling and came back down, drenching the entire classroom on its way. Well, everything except the other students' potions; Harry had put shields around them beforehand (it wouldn't be fair to ruin other peoples' Potions grades, would it?).

Harry looked around proud of the chaos he had caused. Everything in sight was colored various shades of green and silver. And the stunned students were beginning to cause a commotion.

"Turn me back," Draco demanded angrily from beside him.

"What makes you think I know how?" Harry asked his green and silver friend, smirking.

"Sal…" Draco started warningly, and then frowned, "Hey, that's not fair!"

"Life's not fair," Harry said automatically, "What's not fair?"

"I can't say your full name, since…You know…" Draco said, "And I was going to do such a good R'ena impersonation, too…"

"You could just call me Potter," Harry suggested.

Draco shuddered, "But it's just so wrong thinking of you as Potter!"

"We'll think of something," Harry said, shrugging.

"Potter," Snape said angrily, coming up behind them, "what did you do?"

"I'm sorry, Professor," Harry said with his widest, most innocent eyes, "I don't know what happened." Draco gave a snort of laughter behind him. Harry frowned at him, "Well, it's not my problem that you got that particularly horrid shade of lime green. We should call it Fudge green, I think. Isn't that the exact shade of his bowler hat?"

Draco made a face.

"Potter," Snape warned from behind them.

Harry went from thoughtful to regretful in almost no time at all,

"I'm sorry, Professor, honestly! I have no idea what happened!"

"Thirty points from Gryffindor for lying to a teacher and fifteen more points from Gryffindor for exploding the cauldron," Snape said, glaring. "And a zero for today for your failed potion," He added before walking over to the other side of the room to help some of the Slytherins, completely ignoring the Gryffindors that were making the most noise, having suddenly found themselves in their rival house's colors.

"Forty-five points lost…That's not that bad. D'ya think he's caught on and realized that I'm _trying_ to loose Gryffindor points?" Harry stage whispered (rather loudly) to Draco. Ron turned around and glared at Harry while Hermione sat primly, staring straight ahead and obviously ignoring him. Neville, the only other Gryffindor in the class, looked like he didn't know how to react. He looked at Harry, turned to look at Ron, turned back to look at Harry again, accidentally met Harry's eyes, and turned back to his cauldron, obviously embarrassed at being caught staring. The Slytherins looked everything from thoughtful to uninterested.

"Sal," Draco groaned, burying his face in his hands, "Please don't try and _provoke_ half the classroom…I thought _I_ was the Gryffindor here. Um, I mean…relatively." He gave a guilty look at the rest of the classroom, most of which were probably eavesdropping on the conversation.

"Well it's not my fault that we didn't get to prank anybody last night," Harry said, "I needed to explode something. Or work on a potion. Or prank someone. I did all three at the same time!"

"But _I_ haven't had the chance to prank anyone yet! That's your second one!" Then, realizing what he had just said, Draco gave another guilty look around the classroom.

Harry rolled his eyes (it wasn't as if he was planning to keep his identity as the new prankster secret for long),

"Later; you can set up anything you want tonight. Finish your potion or something; my potion didn't touch it and it's about to boil over. Eh, that goes for the rest of you students, too," He added, raising his voice, "Your potions are unaffected…I'm not saying anything interesting so you can stop eavesdropping…really."

The rest of the classroom hurried to their cauldrons, trying not to look like they _had _been eavesdropping while Draco cursed and quickly dumped the next ingredient in. Harry winced at the splashes.

"And then you have to cut up the sunflower stem," Harry prompted, "Paper-thin is best. No, not the silver knife, one of the other ones will work better."

"Go away," Draco pouted, "I can do advanced potions just _fine_ without you giving me weird tips. Or could. You know, when I was a normal Slytherin." Godric had been horrible at Potions and both of the reincarnated Founders wondered if that had affected Draco's decent potion skills. Of course, since Draco admitted to copious tutoring from his Head of House, this learned skill was probably for keeps. Harry was slightly jealous; as Salazar, _he_ had never been able to get Godric to brew even one potion correctly, save the incredibly easy ones.

"Fine, fine, don't say I didn't warn you," Harry said and wandered off towards the other students. Who to bother next? Hermione and Ron were out, of course, Harry really didn't want to talk to them. He wanted to talk to one of the Slytherins but not as a group and, anyways, Draco had already warned him not to do anything 'reckless'. Obviously, the two of them had very different ideas of what the word 'reckless' entitled. Ah, well; it wouldn't be a good idea to do anything 'reckless' just yet…at least not in front of Draco. All other options eliminated, Harry turned and headed towards Neville.

"Hey Neville," Harry greeted cheerfully.

Neville hesitated but eventually answered,

"Hi Harry."

"I was surprised to see you here!" The exaggerated enthusiasm in his voice caused Snape to look up and glare at him.

"Yeah," Neville agreed quietly, "I'm not very good with potions."

"Nah, you just haven't had 'nuff practice or instruction…or confidence."

Neville looked surprised,

"Yeah, sure," he sounded unconvinced, "_I_ was surprised with my letter said that I'd gotten an EE and Snape had changed his mind and allowed EEs in his class._ Everyone_ knows I'm horrible at Potions! I've never finished a single potion without messing it up horribly or just blowing it up."

"You can't be that bad…See, I once knew this kid who was _really_ bad at potions. Horrible. _Definitely_ worse than you. This guy couldn't mix two potion ingredients together without blowing the house up." This time Draco looked up to glare at him. "But I recently learned that he can actually make a pretty decent potion; he got a really good teacher to instruct him on the dos and don'ts of potions making. He could do it all along; he just needed a bit of extra instruction."

"And anyway," Harry continued, "How could you have gotten an exceeds expectations if you were that horrible?"

"I studied really hard," Neville mumbled, "I _needed_ to take this potions class. And most of the questions on the test were close enough to Herbology stuff that I could answer them."

"Neville, _everyone_ studies really hard for the OWLs. Most can't pull off an EE in classes they're bad at. And that Herbology stuff? It's _advanced_ Herbology stuff. Anyways, Herbology is really important in potions. You're lucky you're so good at it! This guy I told you about…Ow!" Harry rubbed his arm and turned around just in time to see Draco tuck his wand back into his bag, looking smug. Turning back to Neville, Harry grudgingly decided to stop teasing Draco. "Anyways…I wanted to as: that letter that said that Snape changed his mind about the grade required for this class…do you remember when you got that?"

"End of July, like always; it was with the rest of the Hogwarts letters. Why?" Neville asked curiously.

"No reason." What reason did Dumbledore have to delay his Hogwarts letters? Was it merely security? Had it even been Dumbledore at all, not Death Eaters or some innocent delay?

They talked about Herbology and its ties with potions and then a bit about pureblood and muggleborn opinions of each other. Harry was practicing on Neville, raised by his proper pureblooded grandmother, what he'd later have to try on the Slytherins while at the same time collecting pureblood views on muggles. He noticed he was starting to sound a bit preachy for muggle rights but at least Neville agreed with what he was saying.

Throughout all of this, Harry helped Neville by instructing him on how to properly brew the potion. It didn't turn out to be the perfect potion (it was more of a forest-green than the sea-green that it was supposed to be), even though Harry tried to give Neville directions that compensated for small mistakes, but it was definitely passable. He was surprised that Snape hadn't tried taking points from Gryffindor for 'cheating'. Oh, right. Snape was ignoring him.

Neville was one of the last students to finish up and the room had long since become full of rustling and movement as other students bottled up potions and packed up their bags, eager to be free of the class. Harry glanced across the room and saw Draco smugly bottle up his own potion, which was only a few shades too dark.

"Coming, Harry?" Neville asked, having bottled up his potion and successfully delivered it to the front of class just as the bell rang, "We have Divination next, right? Or did you not sign up for it this year?"

Harry pulled out his own schedule (he hadn't even bothered to look at it after he going through all the trouble to get it) and frowned,

"That's not right," he muttered to himself.

"Did Professor McGonagall make a mistake?" Neville asked, peering over Harry's shoulder.

"I _didn't_ sign up for Divination," Harry explained, frowning at the parchment, "I even sent a letter requesting…I've got to go see McGonagall about this. Great."

"Now? But class is starting…If you skip, you'll get in trouble," Neville said nervously.

"Yeah, but there's a mistake," Harry said decidedly. It wasn't that he hated Divination or that he didn't believe that he could learn anything useful from it. There _was_ a prophesy involving him and, though it would be more useful learning about possible loopholes, he didn't believe that he would learn any of that in Trelawney's class. "I've got to go talk to McGonagall about this."

"Right _now_?" Neville squeaked, "But she could be _anywhere_! She could be teaching a class!"

"Don't worry about it," Harry said, "It's her job, right? She's my Head of House, so I'm supposed to be able to go to her any time if I have a problem. Why don't you go ahead to Divination, I'll see you later."

Neville didn't look convinced but there wasn't really anything he could do and if he stayed any longer he would be late to class.

As soon as Neville left, Harry headed towards his Head of House, having already been told where to find her by Hogwarts. Professor McGonagall _was_ in the middle of a class and didn't look very pleased when Harry showed up.

"Can I help you, Mr. Potter?" McGonagall asked, not at all pleased to see him.

"There seems to be some mistake in my schedule, Professor," Harry said in his most polite voice. Professor McGonagall was Not Impressed. But then again, she _had_ been a teacher and Head of House for both his father and godfather. Being polite probably just reminded her of James or Sirius trying to get out of trouble.

"Problems can be sorted out between classes or during mealtimes. _Not_ during the classes themselves."

"Then I'll wait 'till this class is over. Like I said, there's a problem with my schedule and I don't really have any classes to go to."

Everything in the Gryffindor Head's posture screamed disapproval but she eventually nodded and said tightly,

"Very well. However, I have a class to teach and I will not allow you to be a distraction. Wait in my office; I'll see you at the end of class."

The Deputy Headmistress found Harry lounging in her office some time later. She gave him a disapproving look, both to his lack of proper manners and the fact that he had stolen a book off of her personal shelves and was now reading it. She did, however, admit a glimmer of respect for the boy; the book was an extremely advanced transfiguration book (way beyond the level of any student) and he appeared interested in what he was reading.

She cleared her throat,

"Mr. Potter."

"Professor," Harry acknowledged as she walked over to her desk and sat behind it. He took the time to reluctantly close the book, though he didn't tuck it back onto the shelf just yet.

"I understand that you are dissatisfied with your schedule?"

"Yeah," He picked up his schedule, which he had left lying on her desk, and handed it to her, "I was hoping to take Arithmancy this year. Instead, I got Divination."

His Professor raised an eyebrow,

"Arithmancy is an extremely hard subject, Potter. This is highly irregular. As it is, you haven't the proper OWL for taking the class. I'm sorry, but you missed out on your chance to choose it as an elective in your third year. If you had asked when you were a fourth year, I may be able to bend the rules a bit and sign you up with the third years but…"

"That's okay, Professor," Harry said, "I'd rather not take the beginner stuff. And I know that it's irregular, which is why I sent you a note along with my request."

"And I sent you a letter back informing you all the things that I've just said."

Harry frowned,

"I never got it."

"That explains why I didn't hear from you again," the Transfiguration professor mused, "I was expecting further argument. When I didn't get a reply, I consulted the Headmaster. He said that you'd have an interest in Divination and suggested that you'd accidentally signed up for Arithmancy."

"Since when has the Headmaster decided individual students' schedules let alone chose classes for said students?" Harry demanded, annoyed, "Because it obviously wasn't a mistake if I wrote a note along with it."

"That is why another note was sent out to you, one that I presume that you never received," Professor McGonagall said calmly, a note of disapproval in her voice at Harry's rudeness, "Regardless of the cause, Arithmancy is an extremely difficult subject, Potter and it is simply impossible to get into a NEWT-level class without the OWL grades to back it up. You simply don't have the knowledge to make up for three years of missed classes."

"I don't know," Harry's smile made his Transfiguration teacher feel like she was missing something, "I learned a lot of Arithmancy over the summer."

"Okay," he abruptly continued, "I won't take Arithmancy this year. But I won't be taking Divination, either. I expect that I'll have free time in its place. Remember, I never signed up for the class, so I _won't_ be required to take it."

McGonagall took a moment to consider this, surveying his schedule thoughtfully,

"That leaves you with five classes. That's acceptable for a sixth year, assuming that they are in accordance with your chosen career. Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Charms, and Care of Magical Creatures…Yes, that's a nice, broad base. Perfect for an auror."

"Thank you, Professor," Harry said, standing up, not bothering to tell her that he had no desire to be an auror.

"Oh, and Mr. Potter?" She waited until he turned to look at her, "You may keep the book, as long as your promise to return it in prime condition and a timely manner."

Harry grinned at her,

"Thanks Professor!" A little overly enthusiastic, perhaps, but the book _was_ interesting and he was very interested in finding out how different areas of magic were explored during the thousand years since he last looked at them seriously.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The classroom that Harry had chosen for his meeting with the Hufflepuff Founder's reincarnation was small, dark, crowded, and (most importantly) significant to the both of them. It was significant because it had been in this classroom that Helga had taught the few young witches and wizards aspiring to be healers. Because of this, they could both find the room easily but it was an obscure enough room that the Headmaster was probably not monitoring it and it was not likely that they would be interrupted.

Piles of boxes filled the room, blocking the windows from sight and Harry absentmindedly noted hiding places that gaps between boxes created. He was feeling vaguely paranoid, mostly because he didn't know what to expect of the upcoming meeting. This was partly because hell hath no fury like a woman scorned but mostly because he was nervous about how the whole meeting would go.

A good portion of his sanity rested on the outcome of this meeting, he knew that. If Ginny reacted badly, he would recover…But he wouldn't be the same. Harry thought back to his wings and the remaining streaks of white. Black and white was pretty evenly balanced but if just a few streaks of white were replaced with black…

The scuffle of shoes on stone from somewhere nearby distracted him from his musings. Harry had arrived half an hour early (alone, since Draco had claimed that he had homework to do). Ginny arrived not ten minutes after him.

She did not see Harry at first, as he was perched up on top of a pile of stacked boxes. Having glanced around, Ginny waved her wand and a couple of fireballs flared into life. She directed them around the room and soon the room was fully illuminated with warm firelight. Just when she was she was directing the last fireball towards the corner where Harry was sitting, she suddenly noticed him and jumped so violently that the fireballs flickered as one and she nearly dropped the one that she was guiding.

She, for her part, looked up to see him sitting still as a statue, appraising her with amusement glittering in his emerald eyes, and nearly had a heart attack,

"Don't _do_ that!" And getting no immediate response, "When did you get there?"

"A while before you did," Harry stood up and jumped gracefully down to the floor. Ginny didn't quite flinch, but she looked at him with a certain wariness in her eyes that made him decide against walking over to her just yet. He felt slightly hurt; Draco had so quickly accepted him back and Harry had so quickly forgiven Draco that, even nervous as he was, he hadn't really considered that she might feel _unsafe_ in his presence. Of course, the first time she had tried to confront him she had attempted to do so in front of a room full of Gryffindor boys.

Harry raised his wand (she did flinch ever-so-slightly this time) and summoned two chairs, each a fair distance from the other.

"So," he said, sitting down and pretending to act perfectly relaxed, "You wanted to talk, so talk." And of course he had left suddenly (supposedly with thoughts of vengeance) and then disappeared for days, months, and then years. The other Founders would have been constantly on guard for a long time until, over time, they would have let their guards down, then forgotten. That's how the world went.

And before he had met the others, Salazar was the type of person who _would_ have disappeared with vows of vengeance. But they had been his friends…He had forgiven them so easily, long before Draco had ever come to ask for forgiveness. When Draco had asked for a truce, Harry had accepted because he _wasn't_ Godric, yes, but would he really have turned the other down even if Draco had had full memories of his life as Godric?

"I…Um…" Ginny's hesitant voice snapped him out of his musings, "I…We'd wanted to see you again…After you…left, I mean…We had no way of knowing…that you were dead."

"_Those were hard times," _Draco had said, _"Helga cried a lot and looked after her 'Puffs as much as she could. I spent weeks at a time off wandering. Rowena tried spells after spells to look for you and then, when she finally stopped denying and believed you were dead (she was the first), she invented spell after spell and read book after book to try and talk to you or bring you back."_

"I don't know why we were so _stupid_!" Ginny's anguished cry made him jump, both at the unexpectedness and the volume of it, "You may just think that I'm just making us excuses but…We _always_ regretted it afterwards. As soon as you left, we realized what an awful mistake we'd just made. Just as soon as you left the school, Godric jumped up and ran after you." Here was a part of the story that Harry had never heard, though Harry wasn't surprised that Draco hadn't mentioned it. _Gryffindors_ were all so _noble_ in their own way…But Ginny was starting to cry now, despite how hard she was trying not to, "He spent all that time out looking for you…Rowena was always looking for some way…and…I've always been so _useless_."

"Hey…" Harry began but his voice was so quiet, he wasn't sure she heard him over her sobs.

After a minute or so Ginny stopped crying. She wiped her tears away angrily and then faced Harry defiantly,

"There," she said with an odd finality, "I've said what I've wanted to say for…a long time. Do what you will."

"Hey," Harry repeated, a little stronger this time, "I'm not…_mad_ at you. I mean, of course I was disappointed, upset, mad… at the time. But it's not like," he moved his hands as if trying to communicate some concept that words could not, "Of course I _was_ mad. And I suppose I still am, that my friends could…But…You're my friends…I suppose the only friends I've ever really had. I thought for a while afterwards…especially with Ron and Hermione…but you're _real_. And if you had done it _deliberately_…but…Things just got out of control. Something happened…I still don't know what it is, but something went wrong…And if it happens again, I don't think I could trust anyone but…You're my friends." He floundered rather helplessly. Where was that silver tongue that most Slytherins were reputed to have? "And…if we could try again…I'm willing to try."

Ginny looked at him for a long minute, uncomprehending, then suddenly beamed at him and burst into tears again.

Harry felt extremely awkward. This, he thought, was a thousand times worse than dealing with Cho Chang.

"I'm sorry!" Ginny cried, wiping away her tears furiously, still smiling through her tears, "…Can't stop crying…And I'm sure you've had enough of crying girls to last you a lifetime…"

"Hey! I only really dated her once or twice and that was _before_ I came to my good senses. So there!" He stuck his tongue out at her, which had the intended effect: she giggled.

"You'd think after crying so much in my past…well, pasts…You'd think that I would be able to just _not _cry and stop being so useless."

Harry thought agreeing would be rude.

"Well, then you wouldn't be Helga," he pointed out sensibly, "You'd be Rowena with all her scary efficiency."

Ginny laughed,

"Did you just call me useless?"

"…Not really _useless_," Harry hedged deliberately. Then he grinned, "You, at least, have common sense, unlike Godric. Come on, none us renowned Hogwarts Founders," he said the title with exaggerated honor, "Were really useless or stupid. Except Godric, of course."

Ginny giggled again but then sobered,

"It doesn't really feel right talking about him…I wish he was here. And Rowena…" She trailed off gloomily.

"Well, he's only not here because he _says_ that he's got too much homework, the liar. _He_ just didn't want to deal with you if I got you all upset."

"He's…here?" Ginny looked started, "I…_Oh_…Now I really do feel stupid. He's Malfoy, isn't he? I'd kind of assumed that it was just the two of us. I mean, he doesn't _look_ like Godric."

"You don't much look like Helga, either. I'm just lucky, I suppose. Really, I have the best luck in the most inconsequential things and then somehow the worse luck everywhere else. You know, this summer it was arranged by Dumbledore that I go stay with Snape and Draco? Except Draco didn't know he was Godric (which was really awkward but only for me) in Snape's house which ended up being the house _I_ lived in a thousand years ago. And then I snuck away and into Hogwarts and the wards attacked me and I'm pretty sure I would have _died_ except Hogwarts tried to help me and I somehow got sent…"

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

I'm sorry to everyone whose reviews I haven't answered! I was trying to get everyone for a while but it's been hard. I think from now on, I'll just work on updating. I want to get to chapter twenty-four by the end of the month. Now who thinks I might make it?

Harry did _not_ want to talk to Helga. Before I ended up writing that bit, I went ahead and wrote most of chapter _twenty-four_ along with a good bit of chapters twenty-two and twenty-three. It was my first time really working ahead not counting a few odd scenes and plot webs. The strangest type of procrastination…

And of course, review please!


	22. Divisions

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty-Two: Divisions**

"Harry," Dumbledore said gravely, "I'm afraid this foolishness of yours has got to stop. Can't you see the effect it's already had on the school?"

It was after dinner at the end of the third week of classes and Dumbledore had called Harry up to his office. Harry was surprised that Dumbledore hadn't done so sooner but perhaps the older wizard had thought that Harry would start acting 'normal' again after a little bit of rebellion. Or perhaps Dumbledore was relying on the compulsive potion that Harry had found in his pumpkin juice every day for the last week or so.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Harry said flatly.

"This…division. Ignoring your friends. Acting rudely to me. You have no idea the rumors that are going about, saying that you've gone Dark, that you've gone to Voldemort…"

"Actually, Headmaster, I'm pretty sure I _do_ know what the rumors are saying," Harry said coolly. One advantage of having Helga on their side was knowing all the current rumors going around the school. Rowena might have been book smart, but Helga knew the _people_. And Ginny already had a very nice little niche in the Hogwarts rumor mill.

Dumbledore just gave him a pitying look.

"Also," Harry continued, ignoring the look, "I haven't been ignoring my friends. I talk with Draco and Ginny every chance I get."

"Harry," Dumbledore said softly, looking at Harry sadly.

"_And_," Harry said, raising his voice slightly, "I behave rudely to those who treat me badly. Those worthy of respect, I respect. Anyways, you've never made anything but weak objections to me or any other students being rude to the rest of the staff."

"Harry, when have I _ever_ treated you badly?"

"Sending me to live with neglectful relatives is treating me pretty badly," Harry snapped, "If Death Eaters had come to Privet Drive looking for me, I have no doubt that my relatives would send me out beyond the wards just so they'd be rid of me. So don't tell me that it was for 'my own good'. And I haven't given you permission to address me by my first name. Do so again and I'll be forced to take offence."

Dumbledore sighed heavily and looked terribly old and defeated. Harry supposed that it was supposed to make him feel guilty but it made him feel just the opposite. Vindicated and angry were his forefront emotions.

"Mr. Potter, then…I beg you to reconsider. You're dividing up the school. Soon they will be forced to choose a side and I'm sure we both know which one of us the students all look up to."

"Yeah," Harry said calmly, "Me. If that is all, Headmaster…?" Inside, he was furious; dividing up the school? Because he, as a Gryffindor, was being friendly with a Slytherin?

Dumbledore sighed again but appeared to have nothing else to say. Harry left.

Just outside the office, he allowed himself to grin, his prize safe in his grip. He walked down the hall; quite cheerful…Having just successfully liberated the Marauder's Rulebook from one of Dumbledore's many shelves.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Snape was lecturing…for once.

Harry rather thought that the only reason that Snape bothered was that there were several easily made mistakes with this particular potion that could cause an explosion capable of blowing up a good portion of the dungeons. Doubtless Snape had added several extra wards to the room beforehand and was prepared to keep a sharp eye on the whole class. Harry briefly entertained the idea of deliberately making one of the mistakes and seeing if Snape would try and stop him but he was just annoyed at being ignored and never _seriously_ considered it. Besides, he was more interested in what he was currently doing: working out a complicated Arithmancy equation and completely ignoring Snape's lecture.

There would have to be four circles…Only natural when he was planning on enchanting four objects. But unless he was planning on doing them all separately, there would have to be _another_, larger circle because he had to power it all himself. Maybe if he had had three other people capable of pulling off such a spell…He already had it mapped out roughly, all those complex, interlacing lines. Rituals were such complex things after all and it took years of practice to the hang of all the little things that meant the difference between success and failure. And failures always meant consequences…

Snape was now over halfway through the lecture and Harry was completely absorbed in his work. The parchment was covered with runes and Arithmancy equations, mixed in with Harry's messy notes and various spells in Salazar's neater hand. Salazar's handwriting appeared only when Harry was writing spells in different languages, of which he was glad, since it meant less suspicion from his teachers. Written Parseltongue was also scattered all over the parchment, referencing moon cycles and days of the week as well as mentioning magical ties to be aware of, mostly with Voldemort and Serphenia.

"Potter!" Snape shouted. So much for being ignored. Harry's Professor sounded mad and dim recollection told Harry that his Potions teacher had called his name several times already. There was muffled laughter from around the classroom.

"Yes, Professor?" He asked as innocently as possible.

"Fifty points from Gryffindor for repeatedly ignoring a teacher!" Snape snapped. The man was definitely angry.

"What is this trash?" Snape sneered, snatching Harry's work away from him. Harry bit back a cry of protest, knowing that if he acted concerned, Snape was more likely to do something nasty. Confiscating his work was fine, Harry could steal it back later, but deliberately setting it on fire, ripping it up…If Snape destroyed that bit of parchment, it might take Harry hours to reconstruct it from memory.

"Extra credit assignment?" Harry knew that Snape would not believe it for a second, so he allowed himself to sound like he was guessing.

Snape glanced down at the parchment and frowned. Of course the man had no idea what it was and it irritated him. If anything, he had, at most, seen one or two things resembling it.

"You don't have Arithmancy."

"I never said it was Arithmancy," Harry answered easily.

"You don't have Ancient Runes or anything remotely related to anything on this parchment."

"That's not true," Harry protested, "It has a bit of Transfiguration." He pointed to the corner where there was scribbled out in Parseltongue: transfigure objects at least one week prior. While doing so, he passed his hand over the parchment and was able to copy the contents (magically) onto the sheet of parchment he had snuck into his lap earlier. Relieved that he now had a back-up copy, he couldn't stop himself from adding, "And do you memorize all of your student's schedules, or am I just special?"

For that he got a week's worth of detentions. Snape had been avoiding giving detentions (as that just meant time alone with Harry witch would probably be unbearably awkward or just uncomfortable; at least one of them was certain to be mad at the other) and Harry knew that this meant the revival of Occlumency lessons. Snape, of course, knew (even if he did not want to acknowledge it) that Harry knew Occlumency already; he'd been the one that taught Snape in the first place. Dumbledore had probably talked to Snape about it.

Just _great_.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"So what's this marvelous new plot of yours?"

"Which one?" Harry asked distractedly. They were in the Room of Requirements and he was once again plotting out the ritual. This time his work spanned over four sheets of parchment and he was ready to reach for a new one any minute. He was mostly double-checking is calculations; with luck, he'd be able to perform it tonight…After Occlumency lessons with Snape.

Ginny rolled her eyes,

"You know…the one you're working on now. The one with the…ritual." The last word was said with a somewhat distasteful air. Rituals being Dark magic, Helga had never known of her friends' frequent use of them. Draco was a little more accepting, as his current life was a lot Darker than his past life. Helga and Ginny were both pure Light.

"Well…I was hoping make spirits…" Harry said vaguely, still not really paying attention.

"Huh?"

Harry finished his last Arithmancy problem, read through it briefly, and rolled up the parchment neatly,

"Spirits. From Impressions. You know, you take a painting or something else and make it more than just animated. If you do it right, you can make it able to walk around, like a ghost. If you do it _well_, it will be a real person, just not…alive. No heartbeat, can walk through walls if he or she chooses, so on."

"I didn't know it could be done," Ginny marveled softly.

"Of course you didn't," Harry said, slightly patronizing, "It's Dark magic."

Ginny made a disgruntled huffing sound but wasn't fully discouraged,

"So you need a ritual to do that?"

"Or heavy spellwork. The ritual's more convenient."

"But if there's already a ritual for it, why do you have to do all that work?" Draco asked, curious.

Harry almost replied with annoyance to this amateurish remark but paused. Godric would have condemned him for this (he had, in fact). As Draco, he was trying to learn. It was…nice. Somewhat. When it wasn't annoying.

"Even with normal rituals, you have to do work. You'd have to change it around a bit depending on what day of the week you decide to do it and what runes you decide to use and what deity you decide to call on and all that rot," Harry paused briefly, "Personally, I've never tried to call on a deity, too much extra work for too little gain. Deities are usually quite fickle and then you need to have a solid contract with no loopholes…

"Anyways, I'm taking four Impressions out of one object at the same time, so of course the ritual's going to be wildly different. And then I'm going to have to trap each of these inside of an object. They don't have a body, you know, so they need something solid to anchor on and then they can solidify their sprit or whatever they want. Gemstones are good because they focus magic well and it works best if the color of the object matches up with the sprit to be trapped in it. And I want to make it so that I can put spells on the object, which required a little bit of extra in the ritual (in this case, the object has to be transfigured from something else, preferably a week or more beforehand) since spells normally just slide off of objects with that much magic in them. And then there are all the runes that change and the Arithmancy formulas I have to run through. If something's off, it can cause Backlash and that's always nasty, in some way or another."

The other two took a minute to go over this information. They had just recently gotten over an intense dislike for all things Dark, after all.

"And these…spirits…they'll be spies for you?" Ginny asked.

"Among other things, yes."

"And where are you getting the Impressions from?"

"The Marauder's Rulebook."

"You're messing around with bits of our souls without telling us?" Draco yelped.

Harry rolled his eyes at the ignorant remark,

"No. Actually, that's why both the rituals and spells are supposedly Dark. It deals with the soul, so on, so forth. Actually, Impressions are Dark nowadays, too. But that's just a misconception. Impressions aren't our souls, more like copies. They grow to be quite different from their originals, in a lot of cases. Just like a normal, human soul."

"You've lost me," Ginny admitted "You'll have to go over this with us later. It's just so different from everything I've been taught."

"Sure," Harry looked at the wall, where a clock conveniently popped into existence, "This room is great, by the way," He scowled, "…I have Occlumency soon. I was hoping to put it off for a bit longer." The clock obligingly moved backwards three hours. Harry grimaced.

He glanced around and then frowned when the Room did not immediately give him what he wanted,

"Have you seen the Marauders' Rulebook lately? I could have sworn I left it around here…Chances are, I'll have to start preparing for the ritual as soon as the 'lesson' ends."

Ginny rolled her eyes and then pulled the little book out of the inside pocket she had sewn into her robes,

"You mean this? Don't just leave things lying around like that. Any student could have walked in and grabbed it."

"Not very likely…Anyways, I've got to go now," Harry said gloomily.

"Well, bye, then," Ginny said cheerfully.

"You'd better get going," Draco said warningly, "Don't give Snape reason to be mad at you. Not that he needs it, really." He had started to forgo the respectful title of 'Professor' when not talking to the man, encouraged by Harry's irritation towards the Head of his house.

"Have fun!" Ginny called as he left the room.

Harry stuck his tongue out at her and the door closed itself little more forcefully that usual in his wake, reflecting his annoyance.

He headed off down the hall, purposely not hurrying. If he was late, then he was late. What did it matter? Harry turned into a short cut, paused, and then doubled back. He could appear in the Slytherin Head's office instantaneously if he wanted to, why bother with shortcuts? He hummed under his breath as he tried to decide on the longest rout to Snape's office (except it had once been his, hadn't it?) without going out of his way. Decided at last on which way to go, he whistled a random tune as he wandered off lazily in the general direction of Snape's office.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"You're late, Potter," Snape sneered as soon as Harry stepped into Snape's office. Ignoring him, Harry looked around rather curiously. He could almost see the little table Salazar used to keep his papers on, one which had probably been replaced decades ago…And that pile of books he always kept on his desk, which had probably been locked away after his banishment because of the inappropriate Darkness to them.

"I got lost," Harry explained airily.

Snape sneered but Harry interrupted him before he could make a scathing comment,

"Look, I don't want to be here and you don't want me here so just _Legilimens_ me a couple times so I can get out of here."

Snape's lip curled,

"Stand over there, Potter."

Harry obligingly walked over to the indicated spot.

With no further warning, Snape started the lesson,

"_Legilimens!_"

Snape dove into Harry's mind with relative ease. That is, he quickly entered the outer layer of the reincarnated Slytherin's mind; the layer that was filled with useless memories just for intruders.

_He was six and cowering behind a dumpster hoping desperately that Dudley and his friends wouldn't be smart enough to find his hiding place…_

_He was twelve and was staring horrorstruck as the giant statue that he thought was Salazar Slytherin opened its mouth…And something was moving deep inside…_

_Blinding pain…He was seven and Aunt Petunia had swung at him with a frying pan for the first time and he had been too surprised to duck…Uncle Vernon tossed him into the Cupboard muttering, "Serves him right, the freak, breaking one of Petunia's favorite plates…"_

Snape pulled out of Harry's mind, frowning,

"You're not _trying_, Potter! _Legilimens!_"

_Terror! He was six and Aunt Petunia expected him to have the plates washed before she got back. He was standing on a chair because he couldn't reach the counter with just the small stool but if Aunt Petunia came back and found him standing on the furniture, he'd be in big trouble. She could be back any second…If he wasn't done when they got back, he'd be in big trouble. If he dropped a plate or missed a spot he'd be in trouble…Was that a car just outside? Terror!_

_He was nine and was sprinting desperately around the school. It wasn't any good leaving school grounds, he'd just get into more trouble, and there wasn't any refuge for him anywhere in Little Whinging. But being at school limited the hiding places…Over there, if he could just make it behind those trash cans…One big leap…Safety…_

"I _know_ you can do better than this, Potter!" Snape shouted, frustrated.

"Oh?" Harry asked archly, "And how would you know that?"

Snape sneered at him, livid,

"_Legilimens!_"

"_I'm warning you," He was ten and Uncle Vernon's large, purple face was inches from Harry's…there was some of Uncle Vernon's spit on his face but he didn't dare wipe it off, "I'm warning you now, boy – any funny business, anything at all – and you'll be in that cupboard from now until Christmas!"_

_He was fifteen and storming away from the Great Hall. How __**dare**__ they?! Ignorant, the lot of them…and they expected to teach the students something useful? A danger to the school? __**Him**__? Reaching a sufficient distance from the hall, he put his hand against the stone wall and snarled "Open; Chamber of Secrets" in Parseltongue…_

Oops. That one was _not_ supposed to be there. Harry could feel Snape pause and dig deeper…searching…Harry quickly worked to locate and patch up the hole that the memory must have slipped through while simultaneously holding Snape back from any other memories that weren't supposed to be there.

"_You __**would**__ have done well in Slytherin…" "Progress for progress's sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions often require no tinkering…" "There he is!" "And now you will face me, like a man…straight-backed and proud, the way your father died…" "'Don't kill Cedric! Don't kill Cedric!' Who's Cedric – your boyfriend?" "Not Harry…" "I knew your parents…" "D'you think I'm proud of having relatives like her?" "I WARNED YOU! I WILL NOT TOLERATE MENTION OF YOUR ABNORMALITY UNDER THIS ROOF!"_

Finally, Snape pulled himself out of Harry's mind, sweating a little from the effort. Harry surveyed him coolly.

"Are you done?" he asked, putting on a bored air.

Snape glared at him,

"What was that memory, Potter?"

"I was twelve and I'd just told my cousin to say 'please'."

"You know which one I mean! It wasn't _yours_, Potter! Who's memory was that?!"

"I don't know," Harry said calmly, "Perhaps Evan's?"

"Get out!"

"Excuse me?"

"Get out of my office! I will not waste my time teaching you! You inept, brainless Gryffindor!"

"But I'm half Slytherin," Harry half protested, half corrected.

"OUT!"

Harry walked calmly to the door, then paused,

"I'll be back tomorrow at the same time and every day after that until my detentions are all done with or you decide to tell Dumbledore that I can maintain a decent Occlumency shield."

The door slammed shut behind him.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Harry took a small, green gem out of his pocket and placed it carefully in its intended spot, as he had for the red, yellow, and blue gems before it.

"I'm sorry," He said to it, "This is a pretty awful life I'm signing you up for."

The green-eyed wizard then moved so that he was standing in the middle of a completely empty room. In the previous three hours, he had removed every peace of old furniture from the room and meticulously cleared away every speck of dust without magic. It was imperative that only certain spells were used in a room before a ritual but it was also necessary for the room to be fairly clean; every speck of dust or dirt meant a little interference with the spell.

Four candles had been allowed to see while cleaning the room and while copying runes onto the floor. Now they were outside of the room, carefully placed around the room in an ancient ward traditionally used in a novice's ritual. It kept malicious, magic-eating creatures like Scelus omens away from rituals and any summoned creatures or deities from leaving the room, trapping them in a crystal. The crystal was already outside; Harry hoped to catch the strange shadow-creature and stop it from further mischief.

Now, after hours of preparation, the room was clean, the runes written in chalk upon the ground, and every object in place. Because the candles were now outside, the room was pitch-black and Harry had to walk carefully as he went to take his position in the middle of the room. Smearing a chalk-rune or kicking a carefully-placed object could be catastrophic. A small mistake could put his life in danger. A big mistake could level the school.

Harry stood completely still in the middle of the room, waiting. Everything was silent, he could feel his heart beating and then…Magic welled up in him suddenly; he was filled with magic. Experience told him what to do. He didn't try to hold the magic but let it flow out of him…

His aura glowed bright white-gold as it hummed with magic and then the golden light poured out of him, illuminating the runes on the floor. First the runes closest to him lit up and from there the light spread out, illuminating runes until the light reached the furthest runes. The five circles of runes were filled with pools of light; the four circles that held the colored stones (one in each corner of the room) and the circle of runes in the middle of the room that held both Harry and the Marauder's Rulebook.

The light intensified until it became unbearably bright and then started fading away. Harry remained still until he was satisfied that the last of the runes had stopped glowing. Then he picked up the Marauder's Rulebook and stepped out of the circle of runes. He didn't need to create light to see where he was going; the room was far from dark. The four gems were still glowing brightly, the light inside them swirling, mesmerizing to watch. Harry walked around the room and gathered the stones, red then yellow then blue then green. They were warm to the touch.

Red, yellow, and blue went into a little bag that Harry produced from the pocket of his cloak and he was once again left holding the green.

"I've got a place for you, but you'll have to wait a while," Harry said to it apologetically, "Take the time to get back your strength." The light in the green gem swirled, the spirit inside too weak to do anything.

Harry put the green gem with the others and tucked the bag back into his pocket.

The reincarnated founder left the room and then stopped abruptly. The four candles were snuffed out and the crystal was shattered.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"And this crystal thing…it wasn't just a really cheap one that…already had a crack in it or something?" Ginny asked skeptically.

"No, that's the thing," Draco leaned forward conspiratorially, lowering his voice, "The crystal was apparently really high quality. It was the size of my hand and perfectly clear and cost something like a hundred galleons."

"That expensive?" Ginny asked, shocked, leaning over and lowering her voice in imitation of Draco.

Harry rolled his eyes. They were in no danger of being overheard; the only reason he was letting the other two talk about this over breakfast. He had put a charm on the three of them that made it difficult for the rest of the Hall to think about them. Even if Dumbledore had appointed someone to watch them, all they'd see was the three of them doing 'normal' things, probably chatting. People sitting nearby would barely notice them, let alone eavesdrop on their conversation. Harry had gone above and beyond Salazar's usual sound-muffling charm because they were sitting at the Slytherin table and he wouldn't put it past his House to have a couple members that could lip-read.

"Proper crystals are hard to come by nowadays," Draco said with a shrug, "That's what Sal said, anyways."

Ginny looked over to Harry, who was silently taking in this relay of information,

"So this shadow-thing of yours…it's dangerous?" Her brown eyes were troubled.

"It's not _my_ shadow thing…and yes, it seems to be pretty powerful, at least," Harry said casually. He didn't mention that the crystal was of good enough quality to hold fairly weak to mediocre deities and demons. Harry had said this to Draco during their earlier conversation but the Gryffindor had had enough tact not to say this outright when talking to Ginny.

Helga _worried_. She knew that she didn't have Godric's raw strength, Rowena's brains, or Salazar's cunning. She had never fully appreciated that her sympathy and compassion towards everyone was a quality in itself. And after her new lifetime with seven older brothers, it wasn't a great surprise that she was more timid and troubled than before.

"What if it attacks the students?" Ginny fretted.

Draco glanced at Harry. It was a possibility that they had discussed.

"It'll be fine," Harry reassured her, "We don't have any reason to believe that this creature will have any inclination to do anything to the students. It seems to be mostly focused on me, anyways. We're working to stop it _before_ this gets out of hand, remember?"

Ginny sighed,

"I wish Rowena was here. She'd know exactly what it was and how to get rid of it."

"Actually," Harry interjected, "She probably wouldn't. She's almost as ignorant in the field of Dark Magic as you two are."

Further conversation was postponed by sudden bustle of activity that heralded the arrival of the post owls. Seconds later, feathered mail-carriers were landing all around them and Harry hurriedly moved his plate aside as a white-feathered owl crash-landed on the table in front of him.

-Rough flight?- Harry asked amusedly.

The owl gave him a disgruntled glare. Harry grinned. With a flick of his wrist there was a bang and a huge cloud of smoke and several Gryffindors' hair turned various colors. In the resulting chaos, nobody noticed the owl in front of him turn into a snake and slither up his sleeve.

-Stupid feathered creatures. Why would anyone want to be an owl? Horrible!-

-It's a job only you can do,- Harry said offhandedly, -Anyway, when are you going to give me my mail?-

Serphenia hissed wordlessly at him from his sleeve.

-And _cold_. Do you know how cold it is up in the sky? Any sensible creature would find a nice hole and go to sleep. But birds? Stupid creatures, they live up there!-

-I'll give you a nice mice later,- Harry promised her. He had a shoebox will a couple of fat little mice for special occasions; usually he would just transfigure one for her or she would have to hunt for one herself.

-…Promise me transfigured mice for a year and then I _might_ be convinced to deliver the rest of your mail.-

Harry didn't hesitate,

-Done.- No matter how hard it would be to find fresh mice regularly, he knew that Serphenia wouldn't go back on her word. Snakes didn't lie; they found lying to be a pointless human habit. For all that they were portrayed at Hogwarts as scheming and backstabbing, snakes were remarkably simple in their thoughts.

-The letter is up your left sleeve,- Serphenia admitted grudgingly.

Harry reached up the indicated sleeve and withdrew a short scroll. Leaning back, he read through the letter quickly then, smirking, read through it again.

"Good news?" Draco asked.

"Pretty good, yeah. 'Evan' made a lot of friends during the end of his Hogwarts days…and some of them are still looking for every opportunity to back out of the Death Eaters. The only reason they still follow Voldemort is fear for their lives and the lives of their families. And if I can set up a safe haven…How do you think Voldemort would react if half of his army deserted at the same time?"

Draco smirked,

"He'd be pretty upset."

"But I thought that nobody remembered Evan?" Ginny asked, confused.

"Just a little tweaking with the memory charm; they remember certain things but not others," Harry said dismissively, "It's a flexible charm, it wasn't hard."

The slowest of the post owls were just arriving and Harry was surprised to see Hedwig alight gracefully on his shoulder. Hedwig was a very nice owl; she should have been one of the first to appear, not one of the last.

"Someone intercepted you, huh, girl?" Harry asked her.

She hooted her annoyance at him and stuck out her leg, allowing Harry to take the letter from her.

"What's this one?" Draco asked as Harry rewarded his owl with a piece of bacon.

"Just a letter from Remus…I need to keep Hedwig busy so people don't notice that Hedwig suddenly has a twin. And if both of them happen to come on the same day, nobody notices with all the other owls around." Hedwig nipped his ear in annoyance and he hurried to appease her, "Sorry, Hedwig. It _is_ nice to keep correspondence with Remus, too. And you get the very nicest bacon from my plate."

-Two-faced human,- Serphenia hissed lazily from somewhere in his cloak.

"So…" Ginny said hesitantly, "You and Hedwig can talk to each other?"

Harry shrugged,

"She doesn't talk. I mean, not while I'm human. It seems that for me to communicate with an animal, at least one of us has to be a magical creature at the time. But that doesn't mean I don't understand her."

-I don't like her,- Serphenia hissed in annoyance, -Owls are stupid creatures. She gave me a dead rat yesterday. As if anyone would want mice all cold and stiff!-

Harry laughed. A silent war between his owl and his familiar had lasted several weeks. In the end, Hedwig had seemed to decide that Serphenia, as Harry's familiar, was just a part of him and treated her as such. Serphenia, though, was still contemptuous of birds in general and Hedwig's constant gifts of dead mice didn't help to soften her attitude.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Breaking into the Headmaster's office was a lot easier than expected. Sure, Salazar had had full access to the room (through invitation and previous break-ins) but surely _nobody_ could be so naïve as to rely entirely on wards set up almost a thousand years past, let alone a long chain of various Headmasters. How could so many people turn a blind eye to how vulnerable such an important room was?

Well, that was not_ entirely_ true, Harry allowed. There were _some_ wards set up in various places around the office (most of which the more paranoid Headmasters of the past were responsible for). However, most of these wards were old and fragile, serving only to protect one area of the office and so leaving practically the whole room unprotected. Dumbledore's own wards were designed only to create the illusion of omnipotence, leaving the defense of his office to a handful of fragile wards.

Not wishing to tear down the room's few protections, Harry entered the office through the most unprotected (but most obvious) entrance: a window. It had been Salazar's favorite entry point, made easier now by Harry's black-stained wings which were, once again, itching to be used. There were only a few wards on the windows, most of which had been set up by Godric, and Harry was able to bypass most of them easily and brush aside the rest with no problems.

Once the window was open, Harry sauntered in and grabbed the Sorting Hat from the shelf. He ignored the whirling and buzzing little instruments; though Dumbledore might receive a few interesting readings from them in the morning, Harry was confident that none of the information from the instruments would be useful. Dumbledore probably didn't know how to use half of the instruments and any readings that might end up pointing towards Harry could be denied. Appearances could always be faked and auras can be manipulated; there would be no definite proof in any data that Dumbledore might manage to collect.

With the Hat in his hands, Harry went back to the window and climbed onto the roof. There was no use in sticking around the office and perhaps setting off one of the instruments when he used magic. Still, the conical shape of the roof made it hard to find any place he could sit comfortably and examine the hat without falling off. He briefly considered flying off to another tower but dismissed the thought. This shouldn't take long and, anyways, if he flew across the school, there would be more chances of being seen and so probably more rumors the next day. This being Hogwarts, a couple rumors were unavoidable, even if Harry had waited for the new moon and decided to wear all black to avoid being seen by more students than necessary.

"Who are you?" The sharp voice nearly caused Harry to fall off the roof in surprise, "What were you doing in Dumbledore's office?" And this being Hogwarts, there was naturally more than just one or two harmless student witnesses the one day that he decided to break into the Headmaster's office.

Wings fluttered in protest to the near fall, stilling when he finally regained balance, automatically hiding his prize behind his back. This would be something of a problem. Somewhat luckily, Harry hadn't come to the Headmaster's office as Harry Potter.

"Alastor Moody," Evan said, turning to greet the new arrival, "I'd say that it's a pleasure to meet you but at the moment but that would be a lie. I'm a little busy at the moment, you see." Unfortunately for Harry, it was exactly the wrong time for him to have a confrontation with Moody. To Harry's frustration, one of the potions he was currently working on (an absolutely essential one if things were to turn out as he hoped) requires that the brewer not to lie during the month that is required to brew it. There were certain loopholes but basically the brewer wasn't allowed to say anything he or she _considers_ to be a lie in this period of time. Harry was an expert on avoiding the truth without lying but sometimes telling a lie would be more convenient for a situation. Like now, for instance. Still, it was an interesting challenge.

Moody was standing in the closest tower; in fact, Moody was in the very tower that Harry had used to get close to the Dumbledore's office and also the same tower that Salazar had so often used to break into Godric's office. It was near enough that one didn't need wings to make the quick leap from the window of the tower to the roof of the office tower, provided that one had enough balance or spells not to fall to his or her death. Had Moody followed him? Or was it just a coincidence that Moody had been passing by and seen a suspicious person in the Headmaster's office?

"I asked you a question, boy!" Moody barked, "Who are you?"

"Evan," Harry didn't give a last name; he rather thought he needed a new one, anyways. The old one, Harrison, was a bit too obvious to use in conjunction with his chosen first name, "A last name isn't necessary, since I'm using an alias. Just call me Evan."

The other tower was slightly taller than the one Harry was standing on, making Moody, who was in the window, about eye level with Harry, even though Harry was standing on the roof of his tower. Harry could see that Moody's magical eye spun around to check the surroundings every minute or so but was otherwise intent upon Harry. The scrutiny was expected but it was making Harry nervous._ Could_ Moody see through Harry's disguise? Harry had thought he was safe, since he wasn't using glamour spells or Muggle disguises that Moody could simply see through, but Harry really didn't know exactly what the eye was capable of. Still, the new Head of Slytherin didn't seem to recognize him and Harry was grateful that Evan Harrison no longer looked like a Harry Potter clone.

The former Slytherin had finally realized the full risk of the similarities between Evan Harrison and Harry Potter and had adjusted Evan's looks appropriately. Twenty years in the past, of course, this had been impossible, as too many people had seen him before he had had a chance to shapeshift. On the train, Harry had made a few adjustments but hadn't really changed the way 'Evan Harrison' looked. He hadn't even realized the risk until one of the first years next to Harry at the feast asked him if he was related to someone named Evan. The 'new' Evan Harrison now had silver eyes, longer hair, various changes in facial structure, and looked to be about a third year (age and height could always be adjusted, though). And, naturally, had no lightning bolt scar.

Moody snorted in disgust; naturally, a fake name was not what he had asked for,

"What were you doing in Dumbledore's office? What do you need the Sorting Hat for?"

"Private business, as I'm sure you can understand," Harry said, shrugging nonchalantly. Obviously, hiding the Sorting Hat behind his back was little use against Moody's magical eye, so Harry wasn't surprised that Moody had realized which item he had stolen, "The enchantments on the Hat are from the time of the Founders. I wanted to have a look at them before they finally fell to pieces under Dumbledore's interferences, well-meaning though they might be. It'll be back in the morning with no damage done."

"So I'm to believe that you're some harmless magical connoisseur coming to view the sights?" Moody asked, annoyed, "You're wearing all black and you waited for the new moon to make your move and I'm to believe you're _harmless_?"

"Of course not," Harry said patiently, "But you can believe me when I say I have no plans to harm anyone in this school tonight."

Moody seemed to consider this for a moment,

"What's your connection with Potter?" Moody demanded.

"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about," Harry said calmly. Inside his mind there was a flurry of activity as Harry reviewed his options. There were a million things that Moody could have used to connect this new Evan to Harry Potter and only a few of them had the potential to bring about any sort of a crisis.

"Your aura," Moody said impatiently, "I've only met two people who know how to hide their aura completely and both within a month: you and Potter. Were you the one who taught Potter to shield his aura?"

"That's rather a large leap of logic," Harry said cautiously, "Couldn't it be a coincidence?"

"I don't believe in coincidences," Moody growled.

"Your right, it is rather suspicious," Harry agreed. This would be a hard question to answer when he wasn't allowed even the tiniest of lies. His wings flapped nearly soundlessly and he hovered soundlessly, thinking, "The answer's a bit complicated. I suppose you could call me Potter's connection with the Slytherins…Or at least one of Potter's Slytherin connections." Harry bounced lightly on the very tip of the roof and then balanced there, wings spread wide in a subconscious gesture saying, 'Look, I'm not Potter. Does Potter have wings like this? No? So I'm not him, even if I have connections to him.'

Moody narrowed his eyes,

"What are you?" he demanded.

"You do know that that's a horribly rude question? At least it was a long time ago…And, anyways, there are so many evasive answers to that question that I could spend all day…uh, night…listing them."

"You know what I meant," Moody snarled, "You don't look like any Vampire or Werewolf. Closer to veela with your wings but not even they look anything like you. You _are_ some sort of Shapeshifter, I can tell that much, but no Shapeshifter I know can go as far as growing wings. So what _are_ you?"

"I'm not a Vampire or a Werewolf or a veela but I'm not telling you what I am," Harry informed the other wizard cheerfully, "And how could you tell? That I'm a Shapeshifter, I mean."

"Apart from the fact that you just confirmed it? I've been near a Metamorphmagus enough to know what a Shapeshifter's like. It's not your aura; you've completely hidden that from me, but I can see that there's something about you that isn't right. You don't look right, even if I don't know what you're supposed to look like."

"That's…Really interesting, actually. I'll have to find some sort of Shapeshifter sometime and see if I can see it myself. I've heard that there was some sort of unique aura signature but I've never seen it…your description is very interesting. And how would you know that I'm not some sort of crossbreed? A one-of-a-kind sort of mix between a veela and a…Vampire or something similar?"

"I didn't. Now I'm pretty sure you aren't. Well, at least I know you can read auras now."

Harry shrugged,

"I didn't say that but it _is_ kind of hard to learn to hide your aura without being able to see it a bit. It comes pretty naturally to someone who knows Occlumency, though, if they know how."

"So Potter can read auras," It wasn't a question, "And probably knows a fair bit of Occlumency, too. Tell me, are you his teacher? You don't look old enough but then…Lots of magical creatures are ageless, vampires for one. And you certainly feel old; are you immortal?"

Harry laughed,

"Now I know why you made such a good Auror! So many guesses but some of them aren't far from the truth. Do you have a bit of Seer blood in you, perhaps? You might have made a good Head of Slytherin if Dumbledore hadn't messed everything up for you…But you'll have to try harder to get the answers you're looking for."

"And the fact that Potter knows Occlumency makes me wonder why Snape hasn't graduated him yet. You'd think he'd be glad to get the boy away from him."

"Snape probably doesn't want to realize that Harry actually knows how to do anything passably," Harry shrugged, "Or maybe Harry's faking and pretending he's horrible.

"Faking is pretty near mastery of Occlumency," Moody said thoughtfully, "Though I won't rule out him knowing how. And just know you called him 'Harry', which means you two are closer than you were pretending earlier when you were calling him 'Potter'."

"You really are dangerous. I'm sure you'd ferret out all my little secrets if I let you keep going like this," Harry was still smiling but now it was partially fake; this conversation was interesting but he got the distinct impression that he was loosing. Or at least not winning.

"You normally look like a human, right? You can make your wings disappear and blend in with the crowd? Otherwise I would have heard about people like you. My guess is that you're one of the students in this school. Or even one of the staff; you're not as young as you pretend to be," Moody looked thoughtful and Harry found the conversation going in a _very_ dangerous direction, "And another thing: you haven't lied once in this entire conversation. Is it just because you're overconfident or is it that you _can't_ lie?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out," Harry said in a sing-song voice. And then he vanished. So what if it _was_ running away? He was a Slytherin at heart, not a Gryffindor. And he wouldn't be able to keep up the conversation without giving away _more_ information. At least Moody still had a couple hundred people on his suspects' list, even if he might watch a few people a little closer than was good for Harry.

"You can also use some sort of teleportation inside Hogwarts. Apparation isn't possible, so it can't be that. Possibly a Portkey," Moody said to the air in front of him, on the off-chance that the winged boy was somewhere close enough to hear, "I'm right that you're one of the staff or students here and I'll even adjust that by saying that you're probably a student. You're used to lying and so your reaction to what I say is fractionally slower than if you were allowed to say what you want. So you normally do lie and for some reason you refrained from it during our conversation."

He waited a minute for teasing laughter or a final retort but there was none. Feeling a little annoyed that the boy had come and provoked him only to disappear, Moody limped off. He would, no doubt, see that boy again sometime and in the meantime there were students to catch out of bed. He would need to keep an eye on the sixth and seventh years, though, and five as well, to be thorough. Especially Potter. There was some sort of connection between the two and watching Potter would be the surest way to find the other. Of course if Evan _was_ an unusual Hogwarts student in either sixth or seventh year, than his profile easily fit with Potter's or the Malfoy brat Potter was suddenly friendly with. And that really was something to think about.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

So…We've got two more days and two more chapters to go. I don't think it's quite asking for a _miracle_ but I'm only about a fourth done with the remaining chapters…at most. They last one in particular should be really long. Maybe.

It has been pointed out by a couple people that calling each other "Sal" and "Rick" is kind of obvious…Is it really? To everyone, Salazar Slytherin has always been Slytherin, the Hogwarts Founder. I don't think very many people would connect "Sal" and "Salazar Slytherin of the great Hogwarts Four". And the concept of reincarnation is pretty obscure, even in the wizarding world. And, of course, "Rick" is an ordinary, Muggle name. There's little talk of the Founders, even in Hogwarts, and their first names are rarely mentioned, even if everyone knows what they are.

_About Serphenia, since a couple people seem confused: Serphenia was Salazar's familiar, the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets. She died when Harry killed her in his second year but was reborn on Harry's sixteenth birthday (wasn't specified in story) as a different type of snake when he received his Dark Angel 'powers'. In the following month or so, she was confused and lost and wandered around. Then when Harry was thrown back in time, she (being his familiar) was forced back in time after him. Therefore, the whole time that Harry was back in the past, so was Serphenia and the __**other**__ Serphenia, the basilisk who was still sleeping in the Chamber of Secrets. She disappeared without explanation for the last couple of chapters and she also has shapeshifting powers, though they're more limited than Harry's. Sorry that I didn't clarify this enough._


	23. Founders Four

Oops, it seems that I have misled some people with one of my comments in the last chapters. When I said that there was two more chapter to go, I was referring to my Halloween deadline: that I will get chapter twenty-four posted on Halloween. Dark Angel itself will go on for…Oh, perhaps another twenty chapters, perhaps not.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty-Three: Founders Four**

In one of Hogwarts' most notorious chambers, a figure appeared suddenly. The only sign of his presence was the brief byplay of rainbow lights around the figure before he faded back into the obscurity of the shadows that filled the chamber.

Safe in the Chamber of Secrets, Harry allowed his relaxed smile to turn into a frown. Moony _had_ hit a little close to home (Harry silently resolved to avoid Moody until he was allowed to lie again) and now Harry had to fly all the way back to the tower, risking even more sightings, since every type of teleportation was strictly prohibited into tower or close to it and walking through the halls was just asking to be caught by a prefect or teacher.

Godric, at least, had gotten his wards right and some very nasty ones enforced the Gryffindor Founder's rules around his office. Salazar's own method of creating passageways in Hogwarts through Parseltongue passwords wouldn't work either; they were only possible in the areas that Salazar had helped to build: therefore not any of the other Founder's offices or the immediate area around those rooms. The one loophole was that, while things like Apparation to the tower was impossible, things like _Dissapparation_ from the tower were possible, even if Apparation and Dissaparation in particular were impossible in Hogwarts. Ergo, Evan's quick escape.

Ah, well…It was a slight annoyance and nothing more. Harry had, after all, escaped unharmed with the Sorting Hat. He'd even managed to have an interesting conversation, if you didn't count the risk involved and the information that Moody now had. He'd have to tell Ginny and Draco to be careful around Moody…

"So that's where you are!"

Harry jumped, startled, before turning to face the voice. Ginny Weasley was standing in front of him, hands on her hips, looking exactly like an annoyed Helga Hufflepuff and, to a lesser extent, Molly Weasley.

"Um…Hi, Ginny…What a surprise…?"

"I_told_ you…_We_ told you to _tell_ us before you started going off and doing things on your own!" Ginny snapped.

"I wasn't…I mean I was but…" Nobody could corner Salazar Slytherin like Helga Hufflepuff could. Motherly peacemaker she might have been but her righteous fury was even harder to deflect than even Godric's.

"I've been looking for you all _night_! I'm going to be exhausted all day tomorrow. It's bad enough that I have to relearn all this basic magic and pretend that I'm having a hard time, now I'll have to worry about falling asleep, too! And all because you decided to do some stupid, reckless, Gryffindorish thing but you had to be all Slytherinish about it too and go without telling anyone!"

"I wasn't doing anything Gryffindorish!" Harry protested.

Ginny raised an eyebrow,

"So breaking into the Headmaster's office isn't reckless and Gryffindorish?"

"I've done it a million times before," Harry muttered mutinously.

"When you were best friends with the owner of the office!"

"But it was mostly during prank wars and if Godric had caught me he would have done things a million times worse than Dumbledore could dream of!" Harry protested, "Anyways, how did you know I was here?"

"Hogwarts told me," Ginny said simply and a little smugly, "You forget, I'm the Founder with the closest ties to the castle."

"Then how did you get down here? Not even Hogwarts could let you into a part of the school that I made by myself."

"Do you honestly think that after living with you for a couple years, some of us might have learned a simple Parseltongue word or two like the one you _always_ use for a password?"

Harry's eyes narrowed,

"I thought that you didn't know I was a Parseltongue until you were ready to kick me out of the school?"

Ginny frowned and touched her head,

"Yes but…We'd known you were a Parseltongue for years. Hadn't we…? You never told us so we didn't mention it…"

"Then why did you get so upset when you found out? I was fired when that got out! Parseltongue was a symbol of dark wizards and as soon as you found out that I was a Parseltongue _and_ dark, you kicked me out of the school!"

"Yes but…"

"And," Harry continued, pouncing on a discrepancy that had been bothering him for a while, "You said that you all regretted banishing me the second that I left. But I heard from Fawkes that you tried to get rid of my House even after that."

Ginny paled,

"But…That doesn't make any sense. We did but we _couldn't_have!" She looked at Harry imploringly, "None of that really happened. I mean, only one version of events _could_ have happened. How can I remember things that didn't really happen?"

Harry, too, was confused. Was she lying to him? But she wasn't; he could tell…Couldn't he? And what was the other option, that it was their memories that were lying instead? Which was reality, which series of events had actually happened and which events hadn't? The darkness was pressing in, shadows growing thicker, suffocating…

Ginny suddenly collapsed and Harry moved forwards quickly. He couldn't prevent her from hitting the ground, but he somewhat cushioned the fall and made sure that her head didn't hit the hard stone floor. And still the shadows were closing in, enhanced by the way that he didn't _know_ if the person that he was holding in his arms was on his side or not. Was she a distraction, a burden, an ally, a friend, a foe?

Out of some innate reflex, Harry shouted a spell. Instantly, the entire chamber was lit with a bright, white light, blinding him. A silver creature stood in front of him but the light was so intense that he couldn't make out what it was. The form seemed to be shifting…was it a stag? A lion? A phoenix? A serpent? A wolf? It was all these forms and more, shifting, changing, and radiating a constant glow of blinding white.

Harry turned away, half blinded. And there, on the wall behind him and the unconscious girl lying beside him, there was a shadow, improbable amongst the bright light, sharply contrasting the whiteness with grey. It appeared to be coming from Ginny, reflecting the way she laid. And yet there was something grossly deformed about it. It was undulating, writhing in pain. It bulged and stretched and finally shifted into something quite different.

It was difficult to describe the creature whose shadow appeared on the wall. The face that sneered out at him from the wall was skull-like but the skull of some sort of animal with a longer head than a humans'. The teeth were sharp and the eye sockets were empty, allowing bright patches of light to shine through them. The creature's body was something a little like a thestral and a little like a dragon, with bat-like wings and a series of sharp spikes or horns starting at the top of it's head and spreading down it's neck. The tail seemed flexible and ended in a wicked-looking barb.

A second later, the shadow shrank down to a small, childlike humanoid shape. What appeared to be wings spread wide and it took off along the wall in some bizarre mix of running, crawling, and flying. Slightly unsettled, Harry ran after it, shouting spells as he went.

"_Cassesium! Obrigesco constrinxi!_" A silver and then bright blue spell flew towards the shadow but both dissolved when they hit the stone wall.

"_Subsistere!_" The binding spell met the same fate as the other two. Nothing seemed to hit the shadow. In frustration, Harry shouted a Parseltongue spell but it, too, had no effect. The shadow was now far ahead of him and he knew that there was little hope in continuing his efforts. Still, he kept running after it, shouting every spell that came to mind. The light of Harry's Patronus was less here; there were shadows on the wall, cast from the giant snake pillars. The creature that Harry was chasing ran into one of these shadows and disappeared.

The reincarnated Founder ran over to the shadow and examined it. There was nothing out of the ordinary about that shadow and he was quite sure that the shadow that he was chasing was gone. He hissed a curse in Parseltongue and turned to head back to where he had left Ginny.

When he got back, his Patronus was standing guard over the Hufflepuff founder and the Sorting Hat that had fallen to the ground beside her. The bright light was now less fierce and he could see that its shape had settled on a lion's form. Harry gave the Patronus a contemplative look before bending to pick up the hat and putting it in his magically expanded pocket. He ran a quick diagnostic spell on his friend and then turned to the Patronus.

"Can you take Ginny back to her dorm unseen?" Harry asked it.

The lion seemed to be thinking about it and then nodded, immediately shifting into the form of a thestral. The wizard put Ginny on the Patronus's back, slightly disturbed that his Patronus could take the form of a thestral. A Patronus usually took the form symbolic of a person's protector whereas thestrals symbolized only death…it wasn't a very good reflection of his mental state. A lion or a stag he understood, and a phoenix or a snake was also logical. But he was sure that it wasn't normal to have more than one or two Patronuses.

There was a blur of silver and the Patronus and its burden disappeared.

Harry stared after it for a second and then turned back to what he had been doing before the interruption. He pulled the green stone out of his pocket. For just a split second, the ghostly image of Salazar Slytherin appeared in front of him but it quickly flickered out of existence.

"Huh, you are getting stronger," Harry said. He turned the stone over in his hands, watching the light inside swirl. Then, holding the gem tightly, he concentrated; focusing on certain memories…He focused strongly on Evan Harrison, his life in the past, his brief appearance to the first years on the Hogwarts Express, and his recent meeting with Moody. He could feel the memories flowing into the stone like a pensive; the memories remained in his head but copies were transmitted to the green stone in his hands.

When this was done, Harry took the Sorting Hat out of his pocket and dropped the ensouled stone into it. He took a nearly identical stone out of his pocket, this one attached to a long string. This he hung around his own neck, tucking the stone under his robes, well out of sight.

::Took you long enough,:: a voice in his mind muttered.

::I wanted to make sure that I wouldn't be seen,:: Harry explained apologetically.

::And yet after all that preparation you were still caught.::

::Yeah, well…The best laid plans often go awry and all that rot. Do you have enough strength?::

The was a pause as the other seemed to be trying to gauge the answer,

::I think so. You gave me some magic with the memories, so I think that I have enough to start using it soon.::

::How about tomorrow? I was thinking about giving 'Rick and Ginny their stones soon.::

::Right.::

There was a pause and then Harry 'spoke',

::What should I call you? Are you comfortable with being called Evan…or would you prefer Silverfang or Salazar?::

::Evan's fine. It's good to get used to a new name as much as possible, even if you've already done half the work by giving me those memories…But you already knew I'd say all that, anyway.::

Harry shrugged,

::It's still polite to ask…and it's not like we're the same person any more.::

::True. You've lived some seventeen years since you made me and I've been stuck in an unchanging world for about a thousand years.::

The words stung slightly and Harry wasn't sure which of them the pain was coming from. Possibly both of them.

Harry changed the topic,

::So, Dumbledore can't get you out of there, right?:: Experimentally, he turned over the hat and was satisfied when the stone didn't fall out. He reached into the hat and felt only air and fabric.

::If you can't, then he definitely can't.:: Evan said smugly::I thought you might have been able to, since you're me, but it seems otherwise, doesn't it?::

::Well, lets get you back to the tower, then. I need to sleep and you need to concentrate on saving up magic.::

Harry headed back to the Headmaster's office, keeping a sharp eye out for Moody. He was tensed and ready to flee at the smallest movement but the trip back to the Headmaster's Office was completely uneventful.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The next day was surprisingly normal, considering the events of the previous night. Helga didn't mention (didn't, in fact, seem to remember) said events and Harry didn't mention them.

After classes, they met as usual in the Room of Requirements and Harry presented the other two with the ensouled gems.

"These are for you," He said simply, passing Ginny a pair of yellow gems and Draco a pair of red ones. As with Harry's own green gems, one of them had a string attached while the other was a glowing stone; both were about the size of a galleon.

"How do we use them?" Draco asked curiously.

"Well…" A ghostly figure appeared at his side.

"Like this," Evan said bluntly.

Draco jumped about a foot in the air,

"There are two of you?!"

Harry grinned,

"For all purposes, I now have a twin. Please treat him as such."

Draco buried his face in his hands and muttered something. Harry distinctly heard the word 'doomed'.

"So this is Godric's reincarnation, huh?" Evan asked, peering at Draco curiously, "Doesn't look much like him, does he? And you'd be Helga?"

"Ginny," She corrected him, "That's my name now."

"Ah."

"You don't look like a ghost. I mean, I can see through you and all but you've got…_color_."

"That's 'cause he's not," Harry said at the same time as Evan said, "That's because I'm not."

They eyed each other for a second, silently communicating and then Evan spoke up,

"I'm what used to be called a 'spirit'. I was made from Salazar's impression in the Marauder's Rulebook. Pretty soon, you won't even be able to see through me. I just don't have enough magic yet."

"Then these stones…" Draco started.

"Hold Stripe and Goldenclaw, yes," Harry said, "I'm holding onto Talon for the moment."

Ginny inspected her stones carefully,

"What are we supposed to do with these?"

"You put them in something and then that object takes on magical properties according to your wishes. The primary stone, that is," Harry explained, "That's the one that has the spirit in it. The secondary, the one with the string, is just a copy of the primary and is supposed be worn on your person at all times. That way, you can communicate with your corresponding spirits. You can transfigure it into a ring, bracelet, wand-holder, belt…Just about anything as long as the jewel remains unchanged. Anything else, you have to find out for yourself; ensouled objects can be very different, depending on the spirit inside them."

The other two took a minute to think about this.

"So, where'd you put yours, Sal?" Draco asked.

Both Evan and Harry smirked,

"Not telling."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The Hallways of Hogwarts were always packed between classes and today seemed particularly bad. It seemed that someone had gotten bright pink gook all over a portion of the hall (possibly a bad magical reaction in charms?) and Filch had roped off a big section so that student's didn't get in it and track it everywhere. As it was, passing students could hear him shouting threats and curses as he waged war against the mystery gook. The gook seemed to be wining.

Harry took this in a he headed down the hall towards his next class, Transfiguration, idly wondering if going out of his way along a secret passageway would make him get there faster. He had just gotten past the bit of passageway that had been narrowed by Filch's boundary when he noticed a large stack of books coming towards him in the opposing flow of students.

Blue eyes peered from around the books and, for a brief second, they met his. The giant pile of books clattered to the floor. Unperturbed, Luna knelt and started gathering them again, while around her people pushed and shoved. Her eyes never left Harry's and Harry watched her calmly. He didn't go over and offer his help. Stalemate.

Luna picked up the last of her books, hesitated slightly, and was pushed along by the flow of students. Harry walked past her in the opposite direction.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Evan wasn't so sure that he liked existing.

The real Harry had never really grieved the loss of the friends that he'd had when he was in the past. He had always just covered up his 'Evan' persona with 'Harry' and 'Salazar' and he was still doing so. But Evan shared Harry's memories of the past; more than that, 'Evan' was who he was now.

This was the existence that he had agreed on back when he was still 'Silverfang'; he couldn't refuse these memories now that he had them. He had a role to play and a job that he had been entrusted with to concentrate on, emotional instability or no. And it wasn't fair to think that Harry was shoving all the responsibility on him; Harry had a lot of things to cope with too.

"Who are you?" A voice snapped from behind him. Evan rolled his eyes. It just figured that he'd be caught by a teacher his first night on patrol. Like creator, like creation or whatever the direct translation of 'like father, like son' would be in his situation.

He turned around and had his suspicions confirmed. Not Alastor Moody but Severus Snape was standing behind him. Evan scowled. How unfair was it that he had to deal with this? Harry had gotten off easy with just Moody; _Evan_ was the one who had to face his once-friend…and with the memories of both the friendship and betrayal so fresh!

"_Who are you?_" Snape repeated.

It would be so easy to lie…Start over, try and forge a new friendship. Maybe it would turn out better? Lily, James, and Sirius were all dead and Remus was far, far away. Even if he went to the werewolf, Remus wouldn't remember him until Harry finally faced his fears and unlocked Remus' memories of Evan. Severus was right in front of him. Right _there_ but infinitely far. He gathered his resolve.

"My name's Evan," He snapped, "And we've met! Thanks for being such a bastard to my brother." Sarcasm and venom dripped from his voice. And he disappeared.

He reappeared in an empty classroom three floors down. He slumped against the wall, fighting for control over his troubled emotions.

Sighing, he grabbed the pendant that he wore, identical in every way to Harry's except that it didn't actually exist; the real thing was in the Sorting Hat, on one of the shelves in the Headmaster's office.

::It's Evan,:: He said shortly::I need to report to you a significant encounter…::

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Seen Luna lately?" Harry asked Ginny casually over lunch.

"I had ancient runes with her," Ginny said, "Why, did something happen?"

"Well, I've been keeping an eye on her," Harry said casually, "She _is_ the reincarnation of one of my past life's best friends. I only saw her briefly yesterday; was she acting strange today?"

"No but her birthday _was_ yesterday. I've been keeping an eye on her but she seems normal," Ginny shrugged, "Maybe we've got to wait another year."

"I don't think so," Harry said.

"What do you mean?"

Draco came over and sat down next to Ginny,

"What're you talking about?"

"Sal was about to tell me about Luna,_weren't you_, Sal?"

"What? What about Luna?"

Harry was saved from having to answer by a puff of blue smoke in the direction of the Gryffindor table. Draco and Ginny glanced accusingly at each other and then at Harry, who ignored them and leaned back to watch the show.

When the smoke had cleared, all of Gryffindor was standing on their chairs or their table (the food and plates had been cleared away with the prank). Each had a lightning-bolt shaped scar on their forehead, large glasses in imitation of Harry's own, and held either a broomstick or a wand. Several also had an owl perched on one of their shoulders.

As one, they took a deep breath and then burst into song (1):

"_Born in St. Mungoes like any of you guys_

_But don't be fooled by this disguise_

_Looks like his father with his mother's eyes_

_Born on a broomstick to conquer the skies _

_Harry, Harry Potter, born to do Great Things!_

_His mum and dad heard he was wanted dead_

_So they took little Harry and away they fled_

_But Voldie found him and his parents' blood was shed_

_And Harry got away a curse scar on his head_

_Harry, Harry Potter, hero of the wizarding world!_

_Went to live with muggles so I heard tell,_

_From what I heard it sounds like hell_

_With what he had he did pretty well_

_Then he was sent to Hogwarts to learn for a spell_

_Harry, Harry Potter, exploring the bizarre! _

_Got himself in Gryffindor, now that's a laugh_

_I've said it before, that hat must be daft_

_Either that or it must'a been drunk_

_A snake with the lions, who would have thunk_

_Harry, Harry Potter, a Slytherin in Gryffindor!_

_Voldie couldn't kill Harry, boy did he try_

_But he couldn't get one up one the Boy-Who-Wouldn't-Die_

_Possession and basilisks and Death Eaters, oh my!_

_For a student, Harry's a pretty tough guy!_

_Harry, Harry Potter, brave against the odds!_

_He defeated Voldie when he was only one_

_Faced him countless times and still he won_

_And his adventures have just begun_

_I'd hate to see the chaos when all his fun is done_

_Harry, Harry Potter, he's the Boy-Who-Lived!"_

The Gryffindors bowed and then seemed to come to themselves. Most of them looked around in confusion or turned bright red, sometimes both. Those with quicker wits jumped down from the table or desk, horrified. The others followed suit. Harry applauded and soon the whole Hall was clapping as well.

"Shame on you," Harry said lazily, "Using a Dark spell like that."

"It was only classified as Dark recently," Luna shrugged, "After I learned it. That makes it perfectly legal, in my book." Ginny and Draco jumped, not having noticed the girl's presence behind them.

"You_do_ know that I don't like publicity?" Harry asked somewhat rhetorically, "So if you're trying to get on my good side, you're going about it the wrong way."

"Harry doesn't but Sal flourishes in it. It amuses him," Luna said simply.

"Harry doesn't," Harry agreed, "And _I'm_ Harry."

Luna looked at him skeptically,

"Sure you are. You're as much one as the other. You're either, neither, and both. And, anyways, you haven't walked away or disappeared yet so I must be getting somewhere."

"Re'na?" Ginny asked, finally getting her voice back.

"Hello, Stripe," Luna said calmly.

Ginny jumped up and hugged her friend.

Harry looked away, digging through the pocket of his discarded robe (he figured that if anyone could get away with ignoring school dress code, it was him, and he should flaunt the fact shamelessly). His whole arm up to his shoulder was inside the magically expanded pocket before he finally found what he was looking for.

"Here," He handed a pair of blue gems to Luna, "I'm sure you know what these are and how to use them."

"How useful!" the blond exclaimed, turning the stones over in her palms, "I'll be sure to find a good place for them."

"And this," Harry handed Luna Rowena's wand, "The other two decided to leave their wands with me incase someone found them using or in possession of them. But I'm sure that you'd rather have a wand that is specially attuned to you. Anyways, very few people should know what your current wand looks like."

"It's true that I don't have any close friends or family as Luna," Luna agreed, still admiring the play of light inside the gems.

"That's not true!" Ginny protested, angrily, "You have us now!"

Luna looked at her with the vaguely surprised expression that was usual to see on the Ravenclaw outcast.

"Thank you."

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

(1) Sung (roughly) to the tune of the Ballad of Davy Crocket (which, by the way, I don't happen to own)

Okay, one more chapter! I have roughly five hours to work on it and, oh…Six thousand more words to write? I've so much to do…

And, again, don't worry, Dark Angel has several more chapters to go until completion.


	24. Hallows Eve Battles

Longest. Chapter. Ever.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty-four: Hallows' Eve Battles**

_Come all, students, one and all,_

_You're invited to our Masquerade Ball!_

_Hand-make a costume, sew up a tear_

_Or magic it together with nary a care_

_But you must bring a costume, or don't if you __**dare**_

_And wear a mask or you'd better beware!_

_Midnight draws near, spirits call,_

_Join us in our Masquerade Ball!_

_Bats and pumpkins; ghouls' delight_

_Witches 'round cauldrons in the dim moonlight_

_Spiderwebs and tombstones, a horrifying sight_

_Its Halloween spirit; mortals' fright!_

_Dead things dance then down they fall,_

_Join us in our Masquerade Ball!_

Whispers filled the Great Hall before the last echoes died out. Of course, spooky songs from an apparently decapitated head inviting them all too some sort of Ball was not yet a common occurrence in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Given Rowena's penchant for pranks involving songs and poems, however, it probably wouldn't be an uncommon occurrence for very long.

The head had disappeared at the end of its song but the memory of it lingered on in almost every student's minds. All the students had been able to see of it was that it was deathly pale, feminine, and that it had curly brown hair. Harry knew it to be a mannequin's head only because he'd seen it close up when Luna had been enchanting it. It was decorated with an extremely curly brown wig and an elaborate, blue-feathered eye-mask.

It was also wearing a simple black velvet chocker with a blue stone dangling from it that made Harry suspicious as to what type of spells Luna had used on it. After all, Harry had dropped his very own green stone into the Sorting Hat, from which Silverfang or Evan, as he now preferred to be called, could both act in place of the Sorting Hat and manifest himself as a spirit.

Across the Great Hall, Albus Dumbledore stared thoughtfully at the scroll of parchment that had, just second before, appeared in front of him. Reaching over, he picked it up carefully, checking for spells. Sensing no pranks or malevolent spells, he unrolled the parchment and read its contents. Frowning slightly, he read through it again before sitting back in his chair, apparently in deep thought.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Thank you all for coming today. I trust that most of you have heard of the incident at Hogwarts during dinner today?" Dumbledore asked the group of people collectively know as the Order of the Phoenix.

There were a couple minutes of muttering while members that hadn't been at Hogwarts at the time were filled in by members that were. Dumbledore waited patiently for the murmurs to die down.

"For those of you who don't know, a group of pranksters has recently appeared at Hogwarts. I believe that this incident was orchestrated by them. During dinner today a head appeared in the Great Hall (on my plate, incidentally) and sang a song to the students along the lines of inviting them to a Masquerade Ball. At the end of the song, the head disappeared and left in its place this note. The first part of the note is the same song as the students heard but then it continues." And he recited to the rapt Order:

_Teachers all, you're uninvited_

_But please don't think you've all been slighted_

_The school will be safe; elsewhere plighted_

_You won't be allowed back 'till all is righted!_

_Teachers all; please stay away,_

_Protect elsewhere on Halloween Day!_

_Shadows dance and white masks gleam_

_Hooded cloaks shoot spells of green_

_If the Phoenix comes play this game as a team_

_This will pass as only a bad dream!_

_Teachers all; lend others your might,_

_Protect elsewhere on Halloween Night!_

_Will you stay and play with me?  
Run around the school blindly?_

_While elsewhere the game gets bloody?_

_Would you abandon them when Halloween's deadly?_

_Glowing eyes watch from 'round the bend_

_Werewolves and vampires and phantoms to fend_

_But don't be afraid, school is safe if you send_

_People to protect those families on Hallow's Eve!_

_You've been warned_

"I ask," Dumbledore said loudly over the sudden outbreak of noise, "to have your opinion on the note's contents. I have copies for you all to look at." And indeed an identical scroll popped into existence in front of each and every Order member.

"Well, this is obviously a challenge of some sort, isn't it?" One Order member shouted, not bothering to look at his copy.

"No it isn't," another protested, "It's a warning. This person doesn't want to see anyone hurt!"

"I'm curious," Moody growled from across the circular table as he reached over to pick up his copy, "Was the note signed 'Evan'?" Five chairs to his left, Snape twitched.

"No, it was not, though I'm curious as to your reasons for asking," Dumbledore said, eyes twinkling, "But that reminds me of another point I was planning to mention. I remember there being only one other Masquerade Ball at Hogwarts in this past century, one that was purely student-planned. I believe that it was the sole work of one calling himself Dagger with some help from the group of pranksters calling themselves the Marauders. As you can see, this note is also signed with the nickname 'Dagger'. Remus, can you tell me what you remember from your involvement in the previous Masquerade Ball?"

"Well, as most people here are aware, I was one of the Marauders along with Sirius Black, James Potter, and the traitor Peter Pettegrew. The Ball was not, in fact, a school-wide prank by the Marauders as everyone seemed to believe. It was actually an independent kind of joke that Sirius and I came up with to get James and Lily together while gifting the whole school with a fun Halloween.

"I _do_ remember that another student helped us with the planning and spellwork but only vaguely. Everyone who was at Hogwarts at the time remembers that the note to the school _was_ signed by someone calling himself Dagger as well as the two of us. Professor Dumbledore and I have already gone over these memories in a pensive and we believe that some sort of elaborate memory charm was cast over me. I don't remember his name or face, since both were edited out of my memory. I don't even know which house he was in. I am, however, reasonably sure that this person is male, which isn't much help. I also believe that we can take anything that he says very seriously."

"This is ridiculous!" Snape sneered, more than a little uncomfortable with the topic, "Why have you called the whole Order just to fuss about some child's prank?"

"There will certainly be a separate meeting among the teachers on how to deal with this prank," Dumbledore stated calmly, eyes twinkling overtime, "I merely hoped to discuss, with the whole Order, this person's apparent intimate knowledge of Voldemort's plans on Halloween."

"I don't think he really shows any," Nymphadora Tonks said thoughtfully, "I mean…this person only said that there would be attacks on Halloween. Voldemort always does something big on Halloween, right? I mean, it's rather predictable, isn't it?

"If you look closer," Dumbledore said with infinite patience, "Dagger is a bit more specific than that. He mentions werewolves, vampires, and 'phantoms'. We know that Voldemort has gained influence in both werewolf and vampire circles. We don't, however, know what he means by 'phantoms'. He is referring to a third group of which we have no knowledge. He also vaguely mentions both 'Halloween Day' and 'Halloween Night', does he not? This indicates that Voldemort plans on either continuously attacking all of Halloween or, perhaps, this note is naming two specific attacks."

"How do we know this is real?" Someone shouted at the same time as someone else said: "But it doesn't say where, that's not very useful, is it?"

"We are temporarily going on the assumption that this is from an informed source," Dumbledore said wisely, "And no, indeed, it does not say where, nor does it give the specifics as to when. However it does mention families; indicates, in fact, that specific families will be targeted. This also brings us one step closer to finding this mysterious prankster. Who has this sort of knowledge of Voldemort's movements?"

"Obviously more people than you think," Snape said irritably, "In Hogwarts alone I'd predict over a dozen. Several students have already been offered the Dark Mark or perhaps this 'Dagger' has a parent in the Dark Lord's inner circle."

"Or Potter," Moody interjected gruffly, "Hasn't he got some sort of connection that lets him know what Voldemort's thinking?"

Snape openly scoffed,

"I've been teaching that brat Occlumency for almost a year now. Even someone with mediocre shields like that can keep someone out of his mind when they don't even have direct skin or eye connection."

"Well, that's a contradictory statement if ever I've heard one," Moody sneered, "If Potter's just barely passed muster, how could you be sure that he could keep Voldemort out if Voldemort's really trying?"

"Potter's shields are good enough," Snape said dismissively, "With a death on his conscience, he has proper motivation. Hoping to earn a little more free time was all it took for the boy to try hard enough to make a decent shield."

"Good enough to pretend that he hasn't any, do you think?" Moody asked casually.

"Don't be ridiculous," Snape said scornfully, "Only a Master at Occlumency would be able to accomplish such a thing."

"Ah, but you don't deny it!" Moody pointed out triumphantly.

"That's enough, Alastor," Dumbledore said gently, "You are not interrogating an enemy; we are all friends here. Now, back to the topic of this discussion: does anybody have any insights as to the meaning of this poem?"

"I believe that the beginning part of the poem is only for students," Emmeline Vance spoke up tentatively, "It doesn't seem to have useful information for us; it merely warns students to have a costume with a mask in time for a Masquerade Ball."

"That's consistent with the previous Ball," Dumbledore agreed, "On that occasion, Remus and Sirius came to me warning me that there would be a prank on Halloween and advising me to make sure all students had costumes. I believe that the first part of the song is _this_ Ball's equivalent."

"Well the general gist of the rest of the song is that there will be attacks on Halloween and teachers should be away from the school 'protecting those families,'" Emmeline continued.

"It's obviously a ruse to get us out of Hogwarts!" Elphias Doge protested, "If there are no teachers to defend Hogwarts, You-Know-Who can just walk in and take control of the place!"

"Well then it's easy; we simply don't leave Hogwarts!"

"'_Will you stay and play with me? Run around school blindly_?'" Kingsley quoted softly, "'_While elsewhere the game gets bloody? Would you abandon them when Halloween's deadly?'_ Can we, knowing that there will be attacks on this day, decide to ignore the threat and stay at Hogwarts on the off chance that it'll be attacked?"

"I think," Dumbledore said quietly, and the whole Order instantly fell silent to listen, "That 'Dagger' is sincere in his requests. I do not believe he is a Death Eater, merely a student that is trying to give us fair warning."

"But Headmaster," Hestia Jones protested, "If he pulled a prank at Hogwarts twenty years ago, he _can't_ still be a student!"

"Dagger proposes that we fight 'as a team'," Sturgis Podmore pointed out, "Doesn't that mean that he's also planning on abandoning Hogwarts and going off to fight? I mean, who's going to keep the children safe?"

"Well, the students' song says 'join _us_ in _our_ Masquerade Ball' even though the second part of the note mentions a specific 'me'," Emmeline Vance said thoughtfully, "Perhaps they are only sending only one or two of their number off to fight the Death Eaters." ("Or he might just be deranged," someone else muttered) "It _does_ also say, 'but don't be afraid, school is safe if you send people…'"

"_If_ we send people? Would the castle be any less safe if we refused Dagger's demands?" Doge asked angrily, "I don't like it, Dumbledore. This whole thing seems rather threatening; we can't let these people intimidate us out of Hogwarts! And if they are really just students, how can they be of any help against Death Eaters?"

"Perhaps Dagger is only some type of wandering spirit or something who merely encourages and helps pranksters among the students," Kingsley suggested, ignoring Doge.

"It is possible," Hestia Jones muttered, "But anything is, at this point. This is madness, Dumbledore, we really do know _nothing_ about this situation. Why don't we simply do nothing? Demand that this person show himself or at least communicate with us? If he really is as benevolent as he claims, he will plan with us so that people don't get hurt!" Most of the group began muttering their agreement.

"We have reason to believe," Moody interrupted, looking annoyed at the idiocy of those around him, "that Dagger will refuse._ We 'have been warned_'! This person gave us a sincere warning and if we fail to take action, well, on our own heads be it. '_Will you stay and play with me?'_ He's asking you to choose between trying to prevent this mere prank (allowing Voldemort to do as he'd like on Halloween) and trying to prevent deaths. He promises that if we work together, they won't allow anyone to be hurt. I say we take his offer."

"But if You-Know-Who learns that we'll be away…"

"Which is obviously why this letter was delivered to Dumbledore privately," Moody snapped.

"I've got another question," Snape suddenly spoke up, "Isn't this Masquerade Ball against the so-called 'Marauder's Code'? I was under the impression that pranksters at Hogwarts aren't allowed to interfere with classes in any way. If this person expects the teachers to be out of the school all day…maybe even plans for it…Then that quite obviously goes against he code."

"Well obviously if it saves lives, it's not really a prank," Jones commented dryly.

"No, he's right," Bill interjected, "Old magic's like that. It's all governed by a very strict set of rules; whatever the casters decide are the rules are the rules and everyone else just has to live by that. The original casters might be able to later make adjustments, but anyone else would have to tear the wards down, even build new ones in their place, to go against that." There was a pause in conversation as people tried to come up with a reasonable argument.

"But surely it can't be that difficult," Elphias Doge protested weakly, "I mean, these are just some old wards some pranksters put up as a joke, right?"

Bill frowned, obviously upset over the lack of respect towards the magic,

"Actually, I've recently managed to confirm a rumor that these wards were put into place by the Hogwarts Founders themselves."

There was more silence; apparently nobody had anything to say to that.

"But," Doge began again, even weaker, "I mean…We're talking about a couple of ancient pranksters here, not…I mean…It's not like the _Founders_ would…I mean they wouldn't _encourage_…" He stopped, obviously flustered and Snape fought the urge to ask if the man had met them personally. Blind hero-worship was something he absolutely couldn't stand.

"I believe that Dagger will keep his word," the words were so painfully extracted that most had to wonder why Snape had bothered to say them at all. Nonetheless, he did say them and his voice was clear and even; the whole Order heard.

"Oh?" Moody immediately pounced on this new revelation, "That's not like you at all! Do you, perhaps, know who this 'Dagger' person is?"

"Once again you jump to unfounded conclusions," Snape sneered, "I hope the career of the 'great Auror Moody' was not based merely off of a few lucky guesses. How many innocent people have been sent to Azkaban on a groundless hunch?"

"Severus," Dumbledore admonished, "Please be civil. We are all friends here. As it is, it is getting late, and it is time for this meeting to come to a close."

"What are you planning to do about this?" Dedalus Diggle asked excitedly.

"Let it happen, of course," Dumbledore's eyes resumed twinkling, having briefly paused as the Order members had fought amongst themselves, "The prank that is. And I expect that we'll be fully prepared to prevent any tragedy on Halloween. There are, after all, more Order members than merely the teachers. And I'm sure we can set up a system so that we can sneak a couple teachers away if necessary, leaving just enough to guard Hogwarts.

"But the note said that _all_ the teachers have to go!" Tonks protested.

"An exaggeration, surely," Dumbledore said calmly, "This Order meeting is officially over. I encourage you all to get some rest and perhaps think a little more about this problem before the next meeting. That is all." He sounded like nothing more than a young children's teacher, assigning a class to think about an upcoming project.

Now that the meeting was over, Order members began filtering out of the room, eager to sleep or do whatever work they had planned for the night. Once the last of them left, gossiping happily, Dumbledore sat back with a sigh. He knew little more than he had before the meeting. If nothing else, he was more confused than ever, though a couple Order members _had_ brought up a couple interesting points.

But at least he had some sort of plan now, one agreed upon by all. And after all, what could happen?

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Well, that settles it I suppose," Harry commented as they all leaned away from Luna's scrying ball. He rather thought that the most informative part of eavesdropping on the Order's meeting was finding out what Rowena had done with her one ensouled stone. She had, as he understood it, used it to enchant a crystal ball. The Slytherin Founder wasn't sure all of its properties but he did know that when the spirit encased in the blue stone was out and about, the crystal could be used to see and hear anything that 'Talon' did. In other words, they now had a rather useful spy. As a spirit, she could turn invisible and could bypass wards not specifically made to stop her. Harry was also sure that most other wards would be ineffective regardless of the caster's will.

'Claire' as she had taken to calling herself, was as different from Luna as Evan was similar to Harry. While Evan was basically Harry with the changes necessary to make him unrecognizable, Claire was physically different from Luna in almost every way. Claire had a head full of dark brown curls, while Luna's hair was strait and blond; she was tall while Luna was petit; and, most of all she had apparently chosen a mannequin's body over flesh and blood. Colorless eyes watched everyone from behind the feathered mask.

Trust Rowena's reincarnation to experiment with how far one could alter one's spirit.

"So it's as we expected?" Ginny asked, unsure. Only Harry and Luna were really aware of all the details of their Halloween plot.

"More or less," Harry said smugly.

"So what's the plan?" Draco asked, irritated that he had been kept out of the loop.

"Well, it goes like this…"

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The next day, Dumbledore made an announcement during breakfast about the upcoming Ball. All students were to have costumes ready the day before and all costumes must include a mask of some sort. Costumes can be hand-made, transfigured, or owl-ordered from specialty stores. Simple black masks would be provided as masks if the students' costumes didn't include one but students were encouraged to make their own.

Harry tried not to look openly smug (Moody was looking _right_ at him) but he wasn't sure if he succeeded.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Are you crazy, Dumbledore?" Professor Vector demanded as soon as he stepped in through the door to the Staff Room, "This is the first I've hard of this 'Masquerade Ball'! Shouldn't we, as staff, be the first to know? And on such short notice, too…it really can't be done!"

"Now, now," Dumbledore said calmly, "I was also caught quite unprepared by this Ball. It is not my doing but rather the doing of a group of students who wish to spread joy on such an unhappy holiday. How could I refuse such an offer?"

Vector seemed temporarily appeased but other members of the staff were still looking mutinous.

"But really, Dumbledore," Flitwick protested unhappily, "This is quit unusual!"

Several other teachers voiced their agreement.

"I also believe," Dumbledore continued, ignoring this outcry, "that classes may be disturbed on the day in question. I have the utmost confident that all of you, as superb teachers, will be able to accommodate your teaching plans for such an event. As an extra precaution, I have hired Auror Nymphadora Tonks, who will be working as part of the school's new security system."

"But you've _never_ worked with the ministry before! Not like _this!_" Professor Sprout gasped, scandalized, "This is a school! We've agreed to deny all of Fudge's advances to turn Hogwarts into a military base!"

"You misunderstand," Dumbledore corrected, eyes twinkling, "Nymphadora was hired entirely under pretext. Fudge believes that she will spy on the school and she will be presented to the school as a member of the Ministry. However, Nymphadora has agreed to do whatever she can to keep the school safe on Halloween. As we all know, Voldemort is usually particularly active on that day and we've reason to believe that the school might be in danger."

He quickly explained the scroll that had appeared before him during the mannequin head's song, choosing his words so that the prankster sounded like a student reaching out for help.

"…So you see that there's a possibility of danger. Also, I will be partially following the note's advice. Myself and two other teachers will leave to defend any families that might be attacked on Halloween. Nymphadora is a trained auror and will be able to help defend the school in my stead."

"But Dumbledore," Professor Sprout insisted, "You're a _master_ Dueler. No auror could ever match your level! The school could suffer greatly without you here to back it up."

"You put too much faith in me," Dumbledore said, looking pleased, "And too little in Hogwarts. Even without me or the teachers I will be bringing with me, Hogwarts can hold her own. Now, let's see…Minerva, Severus, you will be coming with me on Halloween? Do you object?"

"Certainly not," McGonagall said primly.

Snape scowled but said nothing contrary.

"I'm glad that's settled then," Dumbledore said cheerfully.

"But Dumbledore!" Flitwick protested, "I, myself, am an accomplished dueler. Shouldn't I help out if people are in danger?"

"Filius," Dumbledore said, looking at the Charms teacher gravely, "I am aware that you are an accomplished dueler. I am not quite senile yet. But if the school were to be attacked, it is more important that you are here, helping the school, than away, possibly on a wild goose chase."

Flitwick turned pink at the praise in Dumbledore's words,

"Of course, Headmaster."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The four reincarnated Founders were in the Room of Requirement for an emergency meeting dealing with a long put-off task. Luckily the room was being especially helpful today and allowing communication with Silverfang, Goldenclaw, Talon, and Stripe; even when two of them were still trapped in stones elsewhere in the castle. Luna said that Hogwarts could do this because they were part of Hogwarts and the others just believed what Luna said.

"So," Luna said briskly, completely different than the dreamy girl that she normally acted like, "Names."

"Well, I already know that I'm called Evan," Evan said. Everyone looked towards Harry before realizing that he hadn't spoken. It was kind of inconvenient that they shared the same voice. Evan himself wasn't visible to any of those present and there was some doubt as to whether he was actually there or not.

"Yes, but you've already said that you need to change your last name. And you should have a middle name, too, just to be safe."

"Why?" Draco asked, openly confused.

"It might come in handy," Luna replied vaguely, suddenly more Luna-like. Harry agreed that this was true but personally thought that she just wanted an excuse to come up with four extra names; Luna loved riddles and secret meanings. Not that he'd say it out loud.

"Ginny first!" Harry declared, wanting to put his own off until last minute.

"What? Why?" Ginny asked, caught off-guard. She obviously hadn't expected to go first either.

"Well, you're the one who brought it up in the first place," Harry pointed out reasonably.

"I _only_ said that we ought to have names to use before we run off to teach classes. And, anyways, yours is already partly done! You should start!"

"Luna should start," Draco said patiently, for once the voice of reason, "She's the only one who actually wants to do this." Harry had to admit that he had a point, a surprising revelation after years of Godric bringing up mostly crazy ideas.

Luna glanced at the spirit hovering beside her and they said at once,

"Claire Selene Branwen."

"Gee, think about this much?" Harry muttered, "Well, that was quick, who's next."

"No, wait," Ginny said, "What does it mean, Luna?"

"Does this _really_ matter?" Harry asked irritably, "It's two in the morning and I know that tomorrow we'll be expected to be awake and battling for a good portion of twenty-four hours. _Please_ can we just get this over with and get back to bed?"

"Fine, fine..."

There was some silence as they tried to think up names, ignoring the fact that they were going one at a time. Harry's eyelids were feeling heavy and he didn't dare take any type of energizing potion because he would be back in bed soon and a potion would keep him up all night. Ginny was flipping through a couple of books on names (the type that expectant parents tended to go through) that the Room had graciously created for them.

"Um...I really have no clue," Ginny said, glancing at Luna, "Do you think you could help?"

"Eris and Irene? I've always wanted to combine the two," Luna suggested, "Goddesses of strife and peace, respectively."

"Okay," Ginny said, too tired to think about resisting, "Um...Eris Irene what?"

"Humphrey." Everyone looked over, surprised to see Draco surrounded by books, one open in his lap. Next to him, Goldenclaw was also flipping through books. "Don't look at me like that! It's not like I _can't_ read...And the sooner this is over with, the sooner we can get back to bed. It means 'peaceful warrior' whatever _that's_ supposed to mean. And it kind of reminds me of 'Hufflepuff'."

Ginny looked rather indignant but, as everyone was too tired to care (including herself), she didn't make a big deal out of it,

"Fine."

"Hasoc," Harry said.

"What?" Draco asked.

"It's an anagram of chaos. Sounds kind of like havoc, too. It can be my…uh, Evan's…last name. That okay with you?" He directed the last question towards Evan. After all, _he_ was the one who had to live with the name. Evan silently gave his approval of the name.

"Middle name?" Luna asked.

"No idea, I'll keep looking."

"Well, then, I can be Hasoc, too," Draco said cheerfully, "After all we're kind of brothers...sort of."

"Really?" Ginny asked, "I didn't think you were related. Other than distantly, that is."

"Well, we're only really distantly related but there was this blood-brother kind of ritual thing we did when we were little. You know, the one that went horribly wrong?"

"I don't think we've heard this story before," Luna said, glancing at Harry's slightly sheepish face with interest.

"You mean the one we agreed to never mention again? _Ever_?" Harry put a certain stress on the last word that the others took to mean that this particular discussion was closed.

"Yeah, that's the one," Draco agreed. Nobody said anything. He sighed. Back to name-hunting then...

"Well, since both Luna and Ginny have names based on mythology, I suppose we'd better do the same," Harry said in the general direction of Draco and Goldenclaw.

"How about Thor for Godric?" Luna asked, also not specifying whether she was talking to Draco or Goldenclaw; both shrugged, "Norse mythology, god of thunder. He's a big god with lots of muscles who needs the trickster god Loki to help him out of most situations."

"Perfect," Harry smirked, "Then Evan's middle name can be Loki."

"Loki's an evil god," Luna said apologetically, "About half of the times that he helps Thor out is because he tricked Thor into that situation in the first place."

Harry frowned,

"Ah." He went back to flipping through his book.

"Hermes?" Draco suggested hopefully, "He's another trickster god, right?"

"Did you know Hermione is derived from Hermes?" Luna asked casually, flipping the page of her book

"Or not..." There was more silence.

"Dragomir," Harry said finally, "For 'Thor's' middle name. It means 'precious and peaceful'." He snickered, "Anyway, it sounds similar to Draco but I doubt it will be noticed because names related to magical creatures are common in the wizarding world."

"And I'll take Loki," Evan said decidedly, "You four get off to bed. Lots of things depend on tomorrow and, though I don't think you'll mess up, you don't want to be tired enough to risk it."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Halloween morning transpired much as it had twenty years previous. Students woke up to find themselves in dormitories that didn't belong to them, with no cloths but their costumes (or simply a random choice of costume for those who didn't bother to make one). With no real choice, they got dressed and made their way to the hall, the friendlier ones finding other students to chat with on the way, usually talking about the unusual situation that they found themselves in or the Halloween decorations that were suddenly all over the school.

Once at the Great Hall, they found the arrangement completely different than usual. There were two rows of tables, each row taking up one of the walls (with suitable gaps for the doors that lined the walls), and each table laden with food or drink. The rest of the Hall was filled with small tables, each with four chairs and fitting, at most, seven or eight. Various Halloween decorations were hung around the Hall as well.

There was a small table in place of the head table where six unfamiliar people were sitting. All throughout breakfast, there had been a series of debates at different tables over which teachers they must be; no conclusions had been reached. The mysterious people all seemed to be too young and cheerful to be _their_ strict teachers.

Quick eaters had found, much to their annoyance, that they couldn't leave the Hall, even though people were still filtering in. Slowly, the number of people in the great Hall increased until it seemed as if the whole school was crammed into the Hall. Once all of Hogwarts' students _were_ in the Great Hall, one of the 'teachers' stood up to speak.

"Welcome students and thanks for joining us in our Masquerade Ball," the lady with curly brown hair, a blue eye mask, white skin, and a Renaissance-style dress spoke up. She was not hard to identify as the head that had spoken to them in the Great Hall a couple weeks prior. "My name is Claire Selene Branwen and I'd like to explain to you what will be happening today.

"Today, total anonymity is important. None of you students can identify each other. Telling each other or hinting at your identity isn't allowed and, frankly, impossible. Today you will live beyond you preconceived ideas of each other. You may even be surprised.

"As you may have noticed, there aren't as many of us teachers as you're used to. The reason for this is that several teachers are away on urgent business. The six of us remain here to make sure that the you students attend classes and don't cause any harm to each other during the day. The activities and classes will be different from usual. However, they will still be mandatory. Role call will be recorded as usual, even if most of your usual teachers aren't here. Even if the other student's don't know who you are, _we_ know who each and every one of you is, so don't think you can get away with misbehaving just because you're in disguise."

"Because of this lack of staff, schedules will be changed as follows: Divination students will have those classes with the Transfiguration students in the usual Transfiguration classroom. Care of Magical Creatures class will meet in the greenhouses with the Herbology classes. Ancient Runes will be held in the History of Magic Classroom with the History of Magic Students. Arithmancy class will be held with the Potions class in the Potions classroom. And, finally, the Muggle Studies class will meet with the Defense Against the Dark Arts class in the Defense Against the Dark Arts Classroom. Also, due to this temporary lack of staff, anyone in need of a healer can go to the Charms classroom. Charms students will also be required to go to this classroom.

"A copy of this schedule is on every table in the room; you have no excuse for not appearing in the indicated class at the appropriate times. Don't worry about the age gaps in any two classes that will be required to meet in the same room; the things you will be learning aren't normal curriculum things and they will exist quite outside of the knowledge you need to know for the class. If, because of this altered schedule, you are taking the same class twice, you can see any one of us teachers and we will approve a temporary class transfer. If have a free class, you may explore the temporary additions to the school or go to any of the six classrooms. There will also be a haunted house on the grounds that will be open all day.

After classes, students have four hours to do what they want. Then there will be the Masquerade Ball until midnight. If you don't want to stay up that late, you may make your way to any of the four common rooms. The ways to get to these common rooms are marked on the ground. Simply choose a dormitory and sleep on any of the beds; tomorrow you will wake up in your own dormitory. If you've any questions, you have twenty minutes until classes start to approach any of us six teachers." Having finished her speech, she sat back down and resumed conversation with the other teachers.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

_Three Hours Earlier. _

"Ack!" Harry, once again in the appearance of Evan, threw himself out of the way of a yellow beam of light, quickly getting up, just in time to throw himself out of the next incoming spell.

"This is so unfair…" He grumbled, dodging behind a suit of armor, which moved to protect him from three incoming spells, "'_You_ need to do it, Sal, he's head of _your_ house, after all.' As if Re'na had any trouble at all with Flitwick. Probably transported him out of Hogwarts while he was still sleeping. And I'm the one who's got to be somewhere else! Well," he continued in a grudgingly grateful voice, "At least 'Rick offered to help kick Snape out of the school." Having gotten less than five hours of sleep didn't help but he'd manage well enough with adrenaline and a couple of energy potions.

"Speak up, boy, I can't hear you!" A new barrage of spells headed towards Harry. The suit of armor wobbled and fell and Harry cursed as he ran to find new shelter, throwing a few spells over his shoulder.

"You weren't meant to," Harry shouted, "Stupid, paranoid, ex-auror! Just give up and get out of Hogwarts! I mean, what type of shield is that, anyway? It deflects _every_ spell!" The last part was muttered to himself before he shot off another series of spells. "_Subsistere! Lumen __caecus!__Rictusempra!_" The last was shouted out of pure frustration and, to his great surprised, the tickling charm went through Moody's shield, even if it didn't slow the ex-auror for long.

Harry groaned,

"Please tell me this isn't one of those shields that only really simple curses can go through…_Incendio!_" Moody's cloak caught fire and the professor easily directed a water spell at himself to put it out. Harry took advantage of the auror's pause to direct two more spells at the auror in quick succession, "_Expelliarmus! Incarcerous!_" Seconds later, Moody's wand was in Harry's hands and the ex-auror himself was on the floor, struggling against the ropes that bound him.

Harry smirked down at him, happy that he had finally gained the advantage; the duel had been drawn on far too long,

"By the powers given to me by the great Salazar Slytherin himself, I hereby banish you from Hogwarts' grounds until midnight. I hope to see you on _my_ side of the battlefield this time. Oh, and one thing…I'd head over to the Longbottoms' house, if I were you." Moody disappeared, courtesy Hogwarts. Why she couldn't have just done it earlier and saved Harry the trouble, Harry didn't know. It had something to do with the complicated rules concerning teachers and their powers over students and vice versa.

::Are there any teachers left?:: He asked.

::Just Remus,:: Evan replied from the halls a couple floors above him::I'll get him. You just go do your job. I'm sure I don't have to tell you to do your best not to get anyone killed tonight. You sent the Portkeys?::

::Yeah. Twenty or so deserting Death Eaters will be appearing in the Chamber of Secrets in about half an hour. I don't know exactly how many there'll be, since I left the offer open to anyone who wanted to get out of the Death Eaters. That also means that Voldemort might have sent a spy or two. Do you think you can handle that _and_ all the students that you'll have to teach today?::

::I told you, we'll be fine. You just go make sure that nobody dies.::

::I'm not sure I can promise that much,:: Harry said grimly::I'll do my best.::

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Moody cursed loudly. After he had been banished from Hogwarts, he had appeared just outside of Hogwarts grounds and had taken over an hour of precious time trying to get out of the ropes and then half an hour after that attempting to get into Hogwarts. Now he finally admitted defeat. Hogwarts seemed determined not to let him put even a foot on school grounds.

And in all that wasted time, families elsewhere were probably being attacked. He didn't doubt Evan's words on _that_. He would just have to trust the brat to know what he was doing and make sure that Hogwarts remained safe. Where to go…the ministry? There had been rumors of a planned attack there in Diagon Ally…But Evan seemed intent of families. Which family had he mentioned? Longbottom, yes, that had been it; an old family, fiercely defiant of Voldemort and anything 'dark'.

He dissapparated without hesitation, hoping that he hadn't wasted too much time.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Ginny walked out from behind a curtain in the Charms classroom, frowning. Behind the curtain, a doorway in the wall closed itself seamlessly; it would not be good to have the passageway between the Chamber of Secrets and the Charms classroom. The number of Death Eaters that had appeared was over twice as much as Harry had estimated. This would be good in the long run, but it was very bad now, since she had no idea which of them were spies ready to act as soon as her back was turned. She had enough to deal with, teaching several large batches of students, without having to worry about over forty Death Eaters who may or may not have been seconds away from killing each other.

Fawkes and Serphenia were standing guard over the Death Eaters but if things got dangerous for their Bound humans, they would disappear immediately. And there would be injured students coming to her later, knowing what Thor planned to teach his class. She was just thankful that wounded people from the battlefield would be sent to Eris, rather than her, though she might be called away if help was needed.

They were extremely shorthanded…but she had a class to teach. If they were going to make an impression on the student's, she'd have to make sure that they made _good_ impressions.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"_Reducto!_"

Harry dodged easily. Death Eaters, most of them slow with lazy spellwork, school-level spells, and bad dueling technique were nothing after his battle with Moody, even fifteen or twenty at a time. And, of course, against Moody, the whole point was not harming a potential ally; in this battle, Harry's only goal was to take down Death Eaters as quickly as possible. Dead or alive, bound or unconscious…It didn't matter, as long as they wouldn't be able to rejoin the fight.

His only worry was time: Voldemort had organized his Death Eaters to attack seven different families, almost simultaneously. Then, they would regroup and attack the ministry. The families were chosen from prominent light families or old families that had 'dirtied their blood' by marrying Muggles.

With only Draco and Harry available to lead the defense, they had enlisted the reluctant help of the teachers and Order of the Phoenix. Every Hogwarts teacher had been kicked out of the school and the more able duelers had been given hints pointing towards a specific family while those unskilled at dueling were locked away (for their own safety), far from battle. Similarly, the Order had been given an incomplete list of the families that were to be attacked half an hour before the attacks began. Harry had put tracking charms on all of their 'helpers' so he could tell witch families weren't getting help or which 'helpers' were in trouble.

"_Lumen caecus!_ _Cassesium! Cassesium! Cassesium! Sepelionoce!" _Harry shot off spells as fast as he could. Over half of the Death Eaters cowered away from the bright light, three Death Eaters fell to the ground in chains, and five more were blasted away by his blasting curse. And still there were six more Death Eaters…the problem was remembering exactly which spells worked on more people at once, which would actually work to disable the Death Eaters, and which took far too much magical energy.

The Bones family was just waking up. Harry could see a light go on in a window about a dozen yards away, could see them go about in their morning routines in a surreal way. Any moment, one of them could look out the window…But they didn't. Oblivious, they sat around a table, eating breakfast; two middle-aged women and one man. One of the women was helping a young child butter her toast. Three house-elves were busily bringing food, putting it away, and generally being helpful. One of the harassed-looking house-elves was trying to take the toast to butter it herself.

"_Aerdesolo! Subsistere! Somnodormio!_" The Death Eater that got hit by the first spell fell to the ground, clutching his throat. The binding spell caught the second of guard as she tried to dodge and she froze, unable to move. Momentum caught up to her and she smashed into the ground. Finally, the last four the Death Eaters dropped down to the ground, fast asleep, after being caught by the third spell.

One of the Bones ladies looked out of the window and screamed, finally noticing the battlefield that her backyard had become.

Slightly out of breath but unable to pause for even a second, Harry teleported away. There were still five more families, assuming that Draco had dealt with his first family quickly. And they were probably beginning to be attacked just now; even if the Order had been able to send men to the three families that they had been informed about, they didn't seem to be doing very well against the many Death Eaters.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Evan looked around at his first class of the day. His first class stared back at him curiously behind an assortment of masks.

"Hello, class. As I'm sure you've all noticed, Hogwarts has taken up a Halloween theme for the day. Because of this, classes will also be different than your usual classes. So today, instead of struggling around cauldrons all day, we'll be discussing the various ways that potions are used for and against the effects of dark creatures. Any questions before we begin?"

A first year student tentatively raised their hand,

"Are you Professor Snape?" she squeaked, "Uh, sir?"

Evan smiled at her. The class was made wholly of younger students (first year Potions students and third year Arithmancy students), or the question wouldn't have been asked. Professor Snape's disposition towards his classes was quite different than how Evan was currently acting. It was mostly the younger students that believed that the Professor might become less irate if they simply stopped blowing up cauldrons.

"Not at all," Evan winked at them conspiratorially, "But don't go spreading that around; I'm not supposed to say. My name is Evan Hasoc but you can call me 'Professor Slytherin'; I'm one of the four teachers today that you'll find masquerading as the Hogwarts founders." He was indeed dressed as Salazar Slytherin had, though what he was wearing would have been more on the fancy side of Salazar's wardrobe. Evan had, of course, made suitable changes so that he didn't look too much like Harry Potter; most noticeably the now-silver eyes.

"Any more questions? No? Well, the four potions that I plan to cover today are wolfsbane potion, mandrake draught, hate potion, and blood-replenishing potion. Can anyone guess what these potions might do or how they might be used against dark creatures?"

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Draco ducked, stood up, and then ducked again. Really, ten against one was hardly fair. Still, he was the one who had chosen to go, alone, against ten men. Not that he'd had that much of a choice.

Spells of all colors were whizzing over his head but, luckily, he had yet to be hit by one. It seemed that Death Eaters all had really bad aim…or that strict combat training had degraded in the past millennia. Draco was willing to bet on the later. It was, as it was, far past time to start fighting back.

"_Inflammatio!" _A death eater was enveloped in pure white flames until, just seconds later, there was nothing left. Draco frowned. That was _not_ the spell that he had intended. It couldn't be helped; two lifetimes worth of spells had gotten too many spells mixed up in his mind. He tried again, "Ignisduro!"

This time, a great stream of fire flew from his wand, which he directed towards the nearest Death Eaters. Before the spell was finished, he had taken out five death eaters. Four left. The problem with the spells that Godric had known, Draco reflected, was that most of them were flashy; they took way too much magic because they were effective on a lot of people at once. He had few one-on-one spells that weren't overkill on mere Death Eaters and he had a lot more battles to save energy for. Going through possible spells in his mind, he settled on the one that took the least power.

"_Vulnero!" _He shouted, "_Vulnero! Vulnero! Vulnero!"_ His aim was good and his barrage of slashing curses felled three Death Eaters. The fourth was a little smarter and managed to dodge the curse aimed for him. The Death Eater's arm was bleeding heavily but he wasn't injured enough to stop him from causing damage. However, it was his wand arm that was injured; he wasn't about to do any harm to Draco.

"_Truculenter constro!"_ The Death Eater fell to the ground, wrapped tightly in chains.

Pausing a second to make sure none of the Death Eaters were in any condition to do any damage, Draco spared a quick glance at the Finnigan home. They appeared to still be asleep. Knowing that the disturbance was sure to attract aurors, Draco quickly dissapparated.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Welcome," Luna smiled, looking around the classroom. Unlike Luna's usual behavior, there was no trace of dreaminess in her smile or her voice, "As some people who have been to the Ravenclaw common room might have noticed, I'm dressed up as Rowena Ravenclaw, one of the four founders of Hogwarts and the founder of Ravenclaw House. As such, you can call me 'Professor Ravenclaw' for the duration of the day."

She was also completely unrecognizable, as Rowena hadn't looked very similar to Luna Lovegood. A good foot or so taller than her petite counterpart, Rowena's piercing eyes were a darker blue than Luna's pale blue. The Founder's hair was also dark brown and usually pulled into a long braid, opposed to Luna's slightly shorter blond hair. Luna's face was rounder and more heart-shaped than Rowena's thin face and Rowena's nose was longer than Luna's button nose.

The students were all silent, some staring at her warily and others in awe.

"I'm very interested in the History of Hogwarts and most of all in its beginning years. I have read several documents from the time period that no other person today has ever heard of, let alone seen. One of them was the diary of Rowena Ravenclaw," she added significantly. Several Ravenclaws in the classroom that had perked up at the mention of rare documents now were practically out of their seats. "Because of my intimate knowledge of the events that started Hogwarts, the fact that this is half a history class, and the appropriateness of my costume I have decided to share some of these stories with my classes. I am sad to say that history got many things wrong."

"Unfortunately," She said in response to several hands waving in the air, "I am unable to let others look at the diary because I promised the person who left it in my keeping that I wouldn't show it to anyone.

"Now, are there any other questions? Well, then, where to start…I'm sure that most of you have heard…"

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Eighteen Death Eaters this time, Harry counted. He assumed that it was because the Fawcetts were all purebloods of high pedigree and they had not only the couple and some of their parents, but their oldest son, who had graduated from Hogwarts the year before. That made a total of six Fawcetts to cause complications.

In the end, this just made more trouble for Harry, since he couldn't really trust any of them to defend themselves properly. Thankfully, the battles had yet to reach into the targeted homes and the families were still quite blissfully unaware of their attackers.

Harry stopped only for a moment to assess the situation. The eighteen Death Eaters were creeping towards the house in two separate groups. A third group of Order members were approaching the house quickly, still some ways off. And, suddenly, a certain diminutive teacher apparated to the scene.

The situation got out of control very, very quickly. From the Death Eaters, came several spells towards the professor. Seeing this (and finally seeing the Death Eaters), the Order members directed their spells at the Death Eaters. Flitwick himself fared rather well, deflecting or dodging every spell that came his way with the reflexes of a trained duelist. All this would have been very good except that the noise drew the attention of the sleeping Fawcetts. Within seconds, an old ex-auror and very young man were sprinting across the lawn, each looking badly out of shape.

The Death Eaters directed their wands towards their targets and Flitwick, in a true heroic manner, moved to intercept the spells. However, his shield couldn't block all the spells and he couldn't move out of the way, in fear of the spells hitting the people that he was protecting. So the professor bravely stood where he was, between the incoming spells and their intended targets.

And, quickly, Harry moved between the spells and teacher.

"_Vindicto!_" The shield cast a blackish, sinister aura around Harry. The incoming spells hit the shield and were absorbed into it. The magic in the shield swirled ominously and then suddenly lashed out. Several blobs of blackish magic were pelted at the Death Eaters. Those who weren't fast enough to dodge screamed in agony as the magic hit them.

"_Aerdesolo! Subsistere! Somdodormio! Cassesium!"_ Clutching their throats, stopping suddenly, and sleeping, the rest of the Death Eaters fell to the ground, unconscious.

Seeing that not even the Order could fail to take control of the situation, Harry teleported away.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Hello, everyone!" Thor said, smiling brightly and rather eagerly around at his students, "Today we'll be combining Defense Against the Dark Arts and Muggle studies to learn a bit about various non-magical combat and weaponry. You will all learn some of the basics of hand-to-hand or fencing, depending on what the class chooses."

A sixth year in the back raised his hand and Thor called on him.

"Uh, sir…What're we supposed to call you?"

Thor looked sheepish,

"Sorry. My name is Thor Dragomir Hasoc; today you can call me Professor Hasoc."

"Why the costume?" A girl in the back piped up, "I mean, earlier I was in class with someone dressed up as Ravenclaw and we got to call her 'Professor Ravenclaw'. How come you haven't got a cool costume as well?"

"Lost a bet," Thor said, smiling easily. He seemed completely unperturbed about being forced into a vaguely ridiculous-looking lion costume, "Now, the first thing we have to do is figure out whether you all want to learn hand-to-hand or fencing. Let's have a vote."

"Hand to hand?" A pureblood sneered, "Fencing? I thought this was a _wizarding_ school. Why are we learning stupid _Muggle_ defense?"

"Each of the four Hogwarts Founders was familiar with a weapon, completely aside from learning to use each to channel magic. Muggle weapons can be very useful; as is Muggle training. A wizard's duel is more than just standing and shooting spells at each other, after all. You have to be able to dodge and if you're fast enough, you can even snatch your opponent's wand away from them."

"You could easily do the same with magic," a half-blood Ravenclaw pointed out logically.

"Let's have a demonstration, shall we?" Thor smirked, "Five of you against me…And someone else in the class can hold my wand."

The students later claimed that the match was unfair, either because their teacher had obviously had much more experience then they, or that he had rigged the whole match, start to finish.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

It was Draco's second battle and already he was beginning to tire. Still, he had gotten to the house before the Death Eaters had been able to enter it; that was something, at least. The Death Eaters were stealthily approaching the house and the Macmillans were probably still fast asleep, even if it was approaching noon. They had a fat inheritance that they were living off of, after all.

"_Aureusacies_," Draco whispered. A blade of pure light formed at the end of his wand and he jumped in front of the Death Eaters, neatly killing two before the others realized what was happening.

"_Avada Kedavra!" _Death Eaters shouted, panicked, "_Imperio!_" They waved their wands and shouted all the curses that came to their minds, but Draco easily dodged them all, slashing at the nearest Death Eaters with his wand-blade.

The Death Eaters had been halved in number, and most of the remaining were badly injured. Draco grudgingly saw that there was no need to keep attacking them.

"_Multivinculum!_"The remaining Death Eaters fell to the ground in roped. Satisfied that they'd do no more harm, Draco sent up a multitude of multi-colored sparks, sure to attract the attention of the ministry and Macmillan family. Wasting no more time, he dissapparated.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

It was with some difficulty that Claire faced the class and, for the forth time that day, delivered the exact same speech,

"Welcome, students! My name is Claire Selene Branwen and I will be taking over the duties of Transfiguration and Divination teachers today. As some of you may not know, tonight there will be a Ball to which all students are welcome. If you want anything nicer or scarier to wear to the ball than what you're wearing now, that's what we'll be working on in class. Since you're all fifth years and above, feel free to start with your costumes. I'll be teaching a few useful spells over here, for all that are interested. Also, don't be afraid to come to me for help with your costume. I've only one warning: you have to participate in this class. Inactivity will not be tolerated."

As in her other three classes so far, the students all seemed to be spending more attention considering how 'freaky' her white eyes were (and lack of skin color) than they were paying attention to what she was saying.

Frustrated, she plowed on,

"You may alter your current costumes or make new ones altogether. I have set up changing rooms over here for the girls and here for the boys if you'd like to try on costumes. I will be starting my first lesson over here in five minutes on how to sew magically and in ten minutes I will begin to explain how to create artificial blood (you must never us real blood during such events because you never know when a vampire will show up). You may all begin."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

When Harry went to protect the Jones family (formerly Mockridge), he was happy to note that the Order wasn't doing badly here. Of course, it was something he had counted on, as one of the Order members _was_ a Jones and was therefore able to warn her family to get away. Professor McGonagall had been sent here as well. All Harry had to do was make sure that none of the Order members that were at the Jones's house would come to any harm or think to harm him.

For this, he decided that stealth would be best. Hiding in the woods near the house, Harry sniped at the Death Eaters, using mostly invisible spells.

"_Supplanto_," Harry whispered and managed to pull three Death Eaters to the ground with a single tripping jinx. Smirking, he aimed again, "_Supplanto!_ _Collum Angustus! Somnodormio!_" …And looked up just in time to roll away from a nasty hex aimed his way from the other side of battle. It seemed as though one of the Order members had seen him hiding in the trees. The spell missed his face but hit his leg; luckily, it merely hit Salazar's battle robes and dissolved. Harry sighed in relief and, with a bit more concentration that should have been necessary (he was getting tired) he teleported to a tree several yards away and resumed his sniping,

"_Supplanto!_"

In very little time, all of the Death Eaters were in the custody of the Order of the Phoenix and Harry was free to teleport away. As an afterthought, he banished half a dozen little pins away from him, one to each injured Order member. The injured Order members all vanished simultaneously, causing some panic among the remaining Order members. Pulling his magic around him to teleport, Harry wavered slightly. Frowning at the lack of magic in his magical stores, he impatiently pulled out an energy potion and downed it.

Energy once again surged into his magical stores and Harry teleported away.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Hello," Eris smiled sweetly at the class, "My name is Eris Humphrey and I'm a healer. Today, I will be taking the posts of your professors Sprout and Hagrid. I'm sure that you know how this works from your previous classes."

"Are you related to Madam Pomfrey? Or is the similarity in names just something that healers do?" A student spoke up.

"I'm not related to your school nurse; to the best of my knowledge," Eris said, "Any similarity between our names is a coincidence.

"Anyways, I heard that healing wasn't taught at Hogwarts any more than in passing. I thought that it would be nice to remedy that. For the duration of the class, I will teach you basic healing spells. I've heard that you've learned to heal bruises in Charms class, is this correct?"

A Ravenclaw raised his hand,

"Yes, but we also learned some charms to heal fractured bones and bloody noses."

"Ah, yes. The Herbology class is in seventh year so some of you might have taken NEWT Charms already. However, the Care of Magical Creatures class, to the best of my knowledge, only got as far as bruises. Okay, does anyone know the difference, magically, between healing broken noses, broken bones, and fractured bones?"

Two members of the class raised their hands. Eris called on one of them but then paused,

"Excuse me; I seem to have a patient in need of healing. Will people in the Herbology class who know how please begin to teach the Care of Magical Creatures class the basics of healing fractured bones and bloody noses? I'll be back in just a minute." She put the knowledgeable Ravenclaw in charge of the class and quickly walked towards the back of the room

When Eris got to the back of the room, she pulled aside a tapestry. In just seconds, the blank stone wall behind the tapestry had become a passageway and Eris walked through the resulting passageway to another room. This was the room where they had locked the staff incapable of battle and it was also the room where Harry and Draco were sending injured innocents, teachers, and members of the Order of the Phoenix.

Once there, she was surprised to see Madam Pomfrey had taken charge,

"Pomona, fetch me my potions bag. Sibyll, I'll need some hot water. Sibyll, for Merlin's sake, now's not the time to be squeamish! Do what you're told or get out of the way! Ah, there you are, Hagrid, did you get…? Ah, yes, this is it; thank you."

Turning towards her patient, she noticed Eris in the door,

"Well? An extra hand is always nice but I thought you had a class to teach. Hogwarts tells me that you're teaching the student's something useful for once," she sniffed, "Well, I've got everything quite under control here. Do get on with your classes."

Feeling profoundly grateful to the other healer, Eris curtseyed (now why did Pomfrey remind her so much of the old healing Master that Helga had been apprenticed to when she was little?) and left. Even though Eris and the others were basically holding the healer hostage, the healer hadn't wasted time to grudge Eris for it and had instead turned to the injured. A true healer.

On her way back to the classroom, she hesitated and then asked Hogwarts to create another doorway. She quickly peeked into the room that held the deserting Death Eaters. They all turned to look at her expectantly and she backed away with a shiver, allowing the door to close. Helga had always been sensitive to emotions, born to an old family of empaths, but even if she had not been made from Helga's soul, she would have been able to feel the tensions building in the room.

She hoped that Fawkes and Serphenia would be able to stop the approaching situation. Troubled, she turned and headed back to her class.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

When Draco arrived at the Abbott's house, it was clear that the Death Eaters were already inside of the house. Wasting no time, he brandished his light sword and ran inside. Cutting down the first two Death Eaters he met on his way, he ran towards the commotion. Two middle-aged women and an older one were huddled in the corner, obviously pushed aside to torture later. An old man and a middle-aged one were in the middle of the circle, bound and glaring defiantly at the Death Eaters. As he watched, one of the Death Eaters brought down his wand, a spell forming on his lips.

"_Impe_…"

"_Tempestas aequitas!_" There was a roar of pure energy and lightning struck down every Death Eater in the room.

Draco paused to get back his breath. His use of the spell had been instinctive and rather rash; it had taken far too much out of him. And there was still at least five Death Eaters unaccounted for. One of the men gave a groan of terror, bringing Draco's attention to them.

"Are there any more people living here?" Draco questioned urgently, "Any more Abbotts?"

The man babbled something quite incoherent.

"Amy," the horrorstruck voice came from one of the women. She struggled to get up but fell, "Amy was playing outside when they came. She's never been to Hogwarts; she's only nine! She can't defend herself!"

Without even uttering heroic proclamation, Draco turned and ran downstairs, sprinted outside…and came face-to-face with his godfather.

Never before in either of his lives had he been more grateful for Salazar's or Harry's paranoia. The potion that he had been forced to take blurred the drinker's identity (stolen from the cauldron that Draco had brewed in Potions class; Harry hadn't been allowed to brew that day either).

Snape was carrying a little girl. Draco looked at her kindly,

"You're Amy, right? Your parents are upstairs waiting for you."

"Draco? What are you doing here?!" Oh, right. Potions masters could often get around the affects imperfect potions. Great.

"There's no time! Take this," Draco said quickly, pressing several small objects into Snape's palm, "They're Portkeys. The password is the name that a mutual friend of ours took use when he was forced to attend school twenty years ago. Give them to any injured but don't activate any that you're holding unless you want to be locked away for the rest of the day." He hesitated, "You're as good a messenger as any. Tell the Order that an anonymous source has told you that Voldemort's original plans included an attack on the ministry at seven in the afternoon. If you're quick with the Abbotts, the only house left is the Longbottoms."

"Wait, I'm not finished…" Snape started to shout

Draco dissapparated, never hearing the rest.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"A fine mess we've gotten ourselves into," Dolohov sneered.

"Shut up, Dolohov," Nott said tiredly.

"To think," Dolohov gloated, "You put us through all this on behalf of your mutual imaginary friend. How _touching_."

"Shut _up_, Dolohov," Rabastan Lestrange said angrily.

"_Make_ me," Dolohov jeered, "Oh, wait. They took away our wands. We can't do a thing until they all come down to _execute_ us or send us to _Azkaban_."

"It-it mightn't be to late to go back," a young recruit said, stuttering badly, "I-if we…I-if we went b-back, the D-Dark L-l-lord might-might show m-mercy. W-we don't have to d-d-die."

"Shut it, Prush."

"You don't have any authority," Dolohov sneered, "You can't do a single thing unless your imaginary friend comes and tells…"

He was abruptly caught off when a large fist hit his face.

"Shut up," Crabbe muttered.

Rabastan clapped gleefully,

"Way to show him, Crabbe. Nice of you to stand up for yourself every once in a while."

Crabbe squinted at him as if wondering if Rabastan was joking and then shrugged, retreating back to his corner of the chamber. Though there were forty Death Eaters in the Chamber (they were actually locked in the hallway between the entrance from the girl's bathroom and the room that harbored the giant statue and basilisk remains), most of them chose to remain silent in their own chosen spot, watching the others.

Now that it was quiet, however, Rabastan moved to take the spotlight,

"Say, its awful dreary down here, isn't it? What I want to know is what's with all the snakes? You'd expect someone anti-Voldemort to get rid of anything symbolic of him. Then again, he's offering a chance for the dark families to remain dark and not side with Voldemort; it's not like he's a completely light wizard. Awful nice of him, you know."

"Shut up, Lestrange," Nott said tiredly.

"Now, that's not very nice," Rabastan said, annoyed, "And here I thought you were on my side."

"Look, this isn't a picnic, all right?" Nott said angrily, "We're stuck in here and for all we know our family's out there somewhere, dying. I just want to know if they're all right; then I'll figure out what I want to do."

At that moment, there was a ray of light. Everyone looked up expectantly but the girl in the doorway just stared at them for a second and then backed out, the door closing behind her.

"Well, _that_ wasn't very nice of her," Rabastan commented, "D'you think that that means we really _are_ at Hogwarts? Was she a student, d'you think?"

"That wasn't very smart, Nott," a gravely voice commented from the shadows of the Chamber.

"Nobody asked your opinion, Parkinson," Avery said. Close cousins, Avery and Nott usually backed each other up for everything.

"I'm just saying," Parkinson continued, "That there ought to be spies in our little group. A gathering of forty Death Eaters and not a whisper to Voldemort? No, mark my words; there are spies here. You tell them that your weakness is your family and the next second, He'll have killed them for betraying him."

"Shut it, Parkinson."

"What are we, a bunch of children?" Narcissa Malfoy said impatiently, "We chose to believe the words of the stranger and we will follow through with our decision. Out there," she made a sweeping gesture, "There are battles happening, battles that we would have been for, if it hadn't been for this Evan. We could be dead right now. Stop being impatient and see if he'll carry out his words.

From somewhere in the shadows, phoenix song was humming softly.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The scene at the Longbottoms was what could easily be described as chaos. The Death Eaters had already attacked the house and the Order was busy protecting Augusta Longbottom from any harm. As she was a fairly able dueler, they were just wasting resources by sending people to get her out of the immediate line of fire.

The Longbottom's house was a mess; furniture broken, objects scattered everywhere. And still the war between the two groups raged on. Dumbledore was here, clearly far surpassing any of the Death Eaters or Order members. Harry frowned; he couldn't use any dangerous curses here out of fear of hitting Order members.

"_Obrigesco constrinxi!_ _Cassesium! Subsistere!_" His binding spells hit only Death Eaters.

"What took you so long, boy?" Moody roared from behind an overturned table.

"Was distracted by the _three_ _other_ Death Eater raids I had to deal with along the way!" Harry snapped, trying to think of spells that he knew that didn't involve dismemberment or extreme pain. He had been using the same series of binding, sleeping, and tripping curses all afternoon and was getting tired of it. Harry frowned. He was shaking a little. He had just used an energy potion, minutes ago; he shouldn't need another one so soon. What he really needed was sleep; so many teleportations were getting to him. His nerves still weren't recovered from the price of the spell: pain. And after so many in quick succession, his whole body was numb. After half a second's consideration, he took out a post-Cruciatus potion and drank that too.

Deciding that he had wasted too much time with his potions, Harry reentered battle,

"_Supplanto! Supplanto! Somnodormio!"_

"_Ignisduro!_"

Harry ducked behind an overturned cabinet as a long rope of fire attacked the nearest Death Eaters.

"And what took _you_ so long?!" He shouted at Draco.

"Friend of yours?" Moody shouted over the roar of the flames.

The battle went on, Harry, Draco, and Moody managing to push back the Death Eaters from their side while on the other side of the house, Dumbledore and the rest of the Order protected Neville's grandmother from the rest of the Death Eaters. Until some of the Order finally thought to send backup for Moody.

They saw Harry and Draco, completely unknown quantities, battling quite near Moody and panicked, shooting hexes and spells wildly. Harry managed to roll behind a large china closet and Draco started to set up a shield spell. Harry could see the Gryffindor Founder hesitate and then get hit in the stomach by some type of slashing curse.

"What are you doing, you idiots!" Moody was shouting, "Stop before I curse you myself!" But the damage was done.

In a flash, Harry was at his friend's side. He fumbled with his potions for a second before taking out a handful and shoving them down Draco's throat.

Three more curses came at Harry's back while he was taking care of his friend but they dissolved before they even hit him. His aura's glow was blinding white and the wings that sprouted from his back were wrapped around him. Both served as a shield against external magic.

"Idiot!" He berated the Gryffindor, "_Why_ didn't you put up your shield?!"

Draco gave Harry a weak grin,

"You know that all the decent shields that I know reflect magic back at the casters. Didn't wanna hurt them. You're always saying that I need to know a larger variety of spells."

"Stupid, arrogant, optimistic, Gryffindor! I've told you over and over not to make yourself a matyr!"

"Don't be melodramatic; I won't _die_. I've got the best healer ever (duplicated) to take care of me and she's got access to the best potions master in the world. I'll be right as rain in just a couple days, you'll see." He squinted up at Harry, "You know, those wings'a yours are actually kinda cool."

Harry rolled his eyes,

"Idiot. Get going, I'll be there in a second."

"See you then…Venia." Draco disappeared as the Portkey in his pocket activated.

Harry straightened and turned towards the Order, eyes flashing,

"Well, congratulations, Order, that has to be about the _worst_ teamwork I've ever seen in my _life_. Or is it custom for you to stab each other in the back? Without us, you would have no knowledge of these attacks; without us, these families would all be _dead._ Have fun finishing up here; I've saved enough people for you today. I gave you a chance. Before this war is finished, I'll have your names dragged in the mud of every scandal of the wizarding world."

He disappeared.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"How is he?" Harry asked Eris shortly as he arrived on the scene. As soon as Eris had felt Draco's personal Portkey activate, she had immediately left her classes to heal him. Fawkes, too, had abandoned her position as guard of the deserting Death Eaters.

"Draco's fine," Eris reassured him, "You knew just which potions to give him. I'd even say that he's more than fine; he'll be completely healthy and full of energy…as soon as he wakes up. But I don't think that will be for more than a day."

Harry frowned. There was still the afternoon attack on the Ministry of Magic and, as content as he was to let the Order struggle along, he didn't want innocents to be hurt. Moreover, he knew Draco wouldn't want innocents to be hurt because of him.

"If you'll take my suggestion…?" Eris offered hesitantly, "None of us Spirits can leave Hogwarts yet; we don't have nearly enough energy for such a feat. And Luna and Claire are both essential to making the Ball run smoothly but…My-I mean, Ginny could help. None of the Founders were unskilled at battle. Helga was rather good, if she had motivation; even if she doesn't like hurting people, Ginny can help. She feels so useless…"

"Of course," Harry said, "But it was the Order that attacked him…It doesn't feel right helping them after all that."

"But you're not," Eris pointed out simply, "You promised to drag their names in the mud. The name of the Order of the Phoenix and the names that the Order represents, like Dumbledore. If anyone can take them out in the eye of the people, it's you. Don't fight as part of the Order, fight as someone separate from the Order, someone that can save them where the Order fails.

Harry grinned at her,

"You've always been the best to turn to for advice."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"The phoenix is gone," Parkinson muttered.

"Oh, so you noticed?" Rabastan gave a careless grin, "It stopped singing about ten minutes ago."

"Well, if our watcher is gone…" Dolohov said, a nasty grin spreading over his face, "…We can do _this!_" He whipped out his wand and had it pointed at the nearest deserter. Prush got up quickly and stood at his side, along with two more Death Eaters that had yet to talk.

"Your imaginary friend is rather ignorant," he said silkily, "to not notice that the wand that they were given was only one of two." Within minutes, he had all the deserting Death Eaters lined up, some of them crying for mercy.

"Where's your precious Evan _now_?" He jeered. He turned to the first one in line, "_Avada…_"

A great snake uncoiled from the darkness and _struck_. Dolohov was dead before he realized what had happened and his followers were soon dead as well.

Calmly, Serphenia coiled herself once again in the darkness, watching.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The school was faring rather well as the afternoon went on. The students all seemed rather interested in the decorations around them; glowing eyes painted on walls, fake spider webs, skeletons that walked around (really illusioned suits of armor), and lots of plastic Muggle things that were supposed to be scary but weren't. Then again, some students were caught badly off guard when one of the Muggle things opened its eyes and shrieked when they walked too close; Rowena had enchanted these to work inside Hogwarts by powering them with magic and they had underestimated Muggle technology.

And apparently Professor Ravenclaw had none of McGonagall's restrictions when it came to using transfiguration on students; she transfigured several trouble-makers into lizards earlier in the day and left them like that for almost an hour. Still, the afternoon was rather uneventful.

And then the Ball began.

It was really quite interesting. Students were forced to mingle with members of other houses, as they didn't know who was who. Some students who couldn't find their boyfriends or girlfriends had even started, hesitantly, to dance with others. And for people not interested in dancing or romance, there were a lot of other activities open, mostly Muggle ones.

Despite their restrictions, most students had fun.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Harry was profoundly glad that he'd gotten a couple hours' sleep in the afternoon. His magic, which before had been going haywire, had at least a chance to settle down before this new wave of exertion.

Currently, he and Ginny were in the Ministry of Magic, waiting for the action. They had found a strategically recluse spot in the Atrium where they wouldn't be questioned and had quite a lot of cover for when the battle began. Now, all they had to do was wait. Ginny absentmindedly played with Helga's wand (Harry had given it to her before his nap) and sometimes gave a pat to the strong quarterstaff that they had transfigured for her, as if to reassure herself that it was still there.

The atmosphere was casual, laid-back. Inside, both Founder reincarnations were tense, prepared to start fighting at a moment's notice. They had showed up earlier than Voldemort's planned seven o'clock attack because they both thought that Voldemort might alter his plans; seeing as he now knew that he had at least one spy and several betrayers in his ranks (though he didn't know if any were left as most, if not all, had deserted).

Suddenly, at long last, the doors to the Atrium burst open and all the entranceways to the ministry were flooded with Death Eaters. A muttered spell later and a blaring alarm shattered the peace of the offices upstairs, who were unaware of the attack; the Death Eaters had disabled the alarms, so Ginny had set them off magically.

The Death Eaters looked around wildly, confused by the alarm. They crept closer together, instinctively seeking protection…

"_Terracapto!_" Ginny initiated the battle; a large sinkhole appearing under the feet of the Death Eaters. They were quickly sucked in as the hole became wider and deeper, then suddenly closed up in a great wave of dirt, trapping the Death Eaters below the ground.

"_Aerdesolo! Collum Angustus!_" Harry's spells, both designed to suffocate opponents, did their jobs spectacularly. The range of his first spell was broad enough that the air around several Death Eaters simply disappeared and, unable to breath, they collapsed on the floor within a minute. The second spell hit just one Death Eater, an authorities looking figure who fell to the ground, his throat constricted so tightly that he couldn't breathe.

And so the battle began. At first, Harry and Ginny stayed in their comfortable spot, shooting spells at as many Death Eaters as they could reach. Few got into the ministry building, and even fewer made it to the elevators. None made it upstairs, mostly because Ginny and Harry had disabled the elevators beforehand.

Then the Order of the Phoenix appeared. Harry sneered at them, angry still at the damage that they had done to his friend. With the addition of new members, the fight became a melee. Each group charged at each other and shot spells at each other close-range. Few could tell if their spells were hitting friends or enemies. Not wasting any time, Harry sprang into the fight, daggers appearing as if by magic in his hands. Ginny followed him without hesitation, spinning her quarterstaff in front of her to deflect incoming spells.

Death Eaters died. In large numbers. Quickly. And still they kept coming. The Order was getting tired; Harry was spending half his time now dropping Portkeys onto unconscious Order members. He still didn't want anyone to die and he could always use the chance to humiliate the Order.

Finally, Harry realized what he should have seen earlier; Voldemort wasn't coming. He was throwing away the crumbs of his Death Eaters to test this unknown force but wasn't going to appear and fight himself. Dumbledore, too, seemed suspiciously absent from the battle but Harry was sure that the Headmaster had just found a safer place to fight. Quickly, he communicated these thoughts to Ginny.

She stopped to think about it but, when a yellow spell whizzed by too close to her head, she told him that they had to find cover. They held a quick discussion.

"We can't keep doing this!"

"But it's not like we can just leave…"

"Sure we can. You still know that mass-freezing spell, right? Let's freeze

'em all up, send away the injured, and then get the hell out of here."

Ginny gave him a dubious look,

"The power needed for that spell…"

"What're energy potions for?"

The redhead sighed, grabbed Harry's arm, and shouted

"_Desinoutrogue!_" Everything stopped. Nothing in the room twitched or fell, even the Death Eater who was in mid-jump. The whole room was completely frozen. But Harry heard sounds.

"I think there's fighting going on outside. And I haven't seen half of the Order," he moved towards the entrance but Ginny's hand on his arm stopped him.

"Energy spells. Now. Unless you'd rather I just collapsed…?"

Harry disconnected a small pouch from the inside of his battle robes,

"Here, it's full of energy potions and mild healing potions. You should be able to tell which is which but energy's purple, healing's blue. Why don't you finish up with everything here and then come join me outside."

"Reckless," Ginny muttered as Harry ran outside, "No matter how much he tries to deny he's even half-Gryffindor…" She turned her attentions to the frozen battle in front of her, "_Laqueus labrusca!" _Vines erupted out of the nice marble floor binding each Death Eater where they stood. Then she started making her way around to the injured Order members.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Harry ran outside to a scene of chaos not unlike the one he had just left. Finding a spot outside of the commotion, he calmly sniped at Death Eaters. He scanned the battlefield again and again. Harry kept a close eye on Snape but tried to convince himself that he wasn't doing so.

The emerald-eyed wizard scanned the battlefield once more…and saw Snape clearly loosing against a pair of older Death Eaters. He was cornered and the next spell, he wouldn't be able to dodge…Harry rolled his eyes, knowing that he'd regret this for some time afterwards…

"Accio Severus Snape!" And it wasn't as if he hadn't saved other Order members…Even if he hadn't summoned any of them.

Snape went flying through the air, narrowly missing several spells from both sides. Finally, he landed in a spray of dirt behind Harry's small cover (a deserted Muggle building nearby).

Spluttering, Snape lifted his head out of the dirt and saw Harry. He froze; then purpled with fury.

"Potter!"

Harry slapped his forehead,

"I _knew_ that that disguising potion was nowhere near Master level! But nooo, I thought that it was okay, since there was only one other potions Master anywhere nearby and I wasn't about to run into _him_. Stupid luck."

"Shouldn't you be safe back at the school with the rest of your Gryffindor friends?" Snape sneered.

"Oh for Merlin's sake…I just saved your _life_, you idiot. Now get out of here or stop insulting me."

Snape looked at Harry incredulously, then to the many spells that were hitting the building they were hiding behind,

"I can't go back _there_! You've distracted all of their attentions with you little stunt!"

"Huh, so I have," Harry said, peeking around the corner of the building before quickly withdrawing his head, "fancy that."

"I leave you for _one_ second…" A feminine voice muttered from behind Harry.

"My savior!" Harry said happily, turning around to greet Ginny, who was coming out of the ministry building, casually swinging her quarterstaff to deflect all of the spells that were flying by her. In a matter of seconds, she'd arrived at the building that Harry and Snape were taking cover behind.

"Weasley?!" If Snape was surprised before, he was flabbergasted now.

"I'd say 'the one and only'," Ginny said casually, "But that wouldn't be right. Now if you had said 'Miss Weasley'…" She looked at Harry, "That potion was useless, wasn't it?"

"Hey, _I_ didn't brew it," Harry said defensively, "Now, how about getting out of here?"

"Weren't you going to stick around a little longer?"

"…Nah. The Order can deal with the rest. There's only about two dozen Death Eaters left. Let's go."

"_Fidelis!_"

"_Somniare!_"

Each disappeared as their Portkeys activated and Snape was once again standing alone in the middle of a battlefield.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The body count after the Hallow's Eve Battles was shocking to the wizarding world: nearly two hundred Death Eaters dead, total and over a hundred more in the custody of the Ministry…but not a single other death. This was not easily verified, since over fifty injured people had gone missing, but all turned up in various places within a couple hours. Hogwarts came out of lockdown and most of the students and teachers simply acted as if nothing had happened.

-Open: Chamber of Secrets!- It was later on the day of the failed attack on the Ministry and Harry was still tired. There was, however, just one last thing he had to take care of.

The Death Eaters all turned and faced the new arrivals. Harry and Evan stepped into the Chamber, Harry for once not under the guise of 'Evan' but just Harry. The doorway closed behind them.

There was a brief commotion among the Death Eaters and various shouts of "Potter!" Harry waited for them to stop and then motioned Evan to take the spotlight.

"As some of you might remember," Evan started lazily, "I'm Evan Hasoc. Yes, my last name used to be different, but I won't tell it to you because of security reasons. Thank you for your wait; there's only a little more waiting to be done. Harry, if you'd please…?"

-Open: Secret Chambers One and Two!- Some of the Death Eaters jumped a little, surprised at the sounds that they had for so long associated with Voldemort. Two doors appeared in the wall and Harry and Evan each walked over to one.

"Thank you," Evan said, "Now, I'm sure that you've experienced at least some amount of excitement in the last couple of hours, so there will be one more test of loyalty to make sure that you're all safe here. Please come when we call your names."

Slowly the Death Eaters trickled into the two rooms and out into another, smaller room on the other side. Through the use of numerous truth potions and spells, Harry and Evan evaluated the trustworthiness of each of the deserting Death Eaters. Three Death Eaters were sent to a side chamber and never heard of again but the rest all graduated into the small room.

Finally, all the Death Eaters had been tested. Harry and Evan walked into the smaller room, Harry with Serphenia draped around his shoulders.

"Now that you've all been tested, welcome you to the Chamber of Secrets. I'd like to assure you that all of your families have been taken care of and tomorrow you'll have the choice of returning to your families or moving your families in here. Within the week, I will also present you all with various trinkets with which you will be able to track your family's safety. If you've any further concerns, you can talk to me tomorrow. And now, I've got to go help tend to the wounded. Harry will take you on a tour of your rooms." A doorway opened in the wall next to Evan and he left.

"Just a quick one," Harry said, turning to the Death Eaters, "I'd like to go to bed soon, and I'm sure you all would as well." The Death Eaters shifted uneasily. Evan was someone that they felt they could trust. Could they trust Harry Potter, Golden Boy of Hogwarts? They had little time to think about it, for a large doorway opened in the wall beside Harry and he promptly began his tour.

"Okay," Harry said cheerfully, "This place is really huge, so you each get your own room. I really don't know what Salazar Slytherin was thinking when he made so many but it turned out useful. The rooms are all over here, feel free to pick any room that isn't already occupied. If you step into the room and close the door behind you, the first word you say becomes the password. As you can see, bathrooms are over here…

"And over here there's the cafeteria. The house-elves are going out of their way to bring you extra food so please be nice to any you see. If any of you have heard the story of Dobby, one of the Malfoy's house-elf who I set free…and who then proceeded to knock Lucius Malfoy down a flight of stairs to protect me? Yeah, I like house-elves. Don't abuse them.

"Over here's the entertainment area. It's not very big yet but if a lot of people choose to stay here, it'll grow larger. This is the library…not Salazar's library, though. That's been closed off because it's full of nasty spells and, really, most of you are still on probation. You'll find a large assortment of Muggle books in here, as well of Magical ones of the more harmless brand. This is a television. It's a Muggle entertainment item. Use this button to change the images on the screen and this to change the volume. Please note that most of the images on the screen aren't real and merely Muggle entertainment and, yes, most Muggles are well aware of how bad most of these shows are.

"This passageway over here leads back to parts of the Chamber that used to house a giant basilisk. As you can see, it's currently closed off, since her corpse is still down there and still needs to be removed." Serphenia hissed softly and Harry stroked her head. "And that's it for the tour. You'll find all of your wands in this room over here but be warned that fighting is absolutely prohibited. We _will_ know if you start a fight and troublemakers will most likely be kicked out of Hogwarts.

"And that's it, I suppose. Any questions? No? Well, then…Enjoy your stay."

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Some might want to know how Moody knew who Harry was, if he had a potion that disguised his identity. Simple, he guessed – so he doesn't know that Harry's actually Harry. Unknown quantity shows up and starts fighting Death Eaters, wasn't that hard to guess, especially for such a pro-guesser as Moody.

Also, questions were asked in reviews that I haven't gotten around to answering. I might just answer them in the next chapter but…I don't think the next chapter will be for a while. I really struggled for this one. But that's understandable, since it turned out to be about seven-thousand words above my original guesstimate. So sorry for missing the deadline, but I hope you enjoyed it!

And I have an enormous list of all the spells that the founders use, who uses them, and what they do. Anyone interested enough for me to post them next chapter?


	25. Aftermath

Short chapter! Ah, reminds me of the good ol' days. Or not. All my old writing sucks.

So, two things. Firstly that I think that at least half of the last chapter was really bad and I apologize for it. But, hey, I think the first half of this story really sucks (what else do you expect, I wrote 'em nearly three years ago!) and you guys are still bearing with me. So thanks for your patience. I'm thinking that after this chapter, I'm either ignoring Dark Angel for a while or treating it like my own NaNoWriMo challenge. What do you guys think? Fifty-thousand words…Equals sixteen and a half chapters according to my standard of at least three thousand. It's a little more than three and a third times my last chapter :D I have until the end of November but then I don't know how many words in the last chapter counted…If I decide to take Dark Angel as my NaNoWriMo challenge, I'll see if I can finish it by the end of the year. Either way, for now I'll just write the story and then, after I finish Dark Angel, I'll find myself a good beta reader and go back and rewrite all the parts that suck.

Also, you'll see that I posted that list of spells that I was talking later. It's at the bottom. I totally butchered the Latin language but I'm not the first to do so. The tradition began, I believe, with the illustrious JK Rowling herself :D You'll notice that I liked picking on Godric a lot, giving him spells like "Divine Massacre" and "White Slaughter House".

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty-Five: Aftermath**

Hogwarts was changed after the Hallows Eve attacks, even if only subtly. At first, there was a lot more unity between the houses…Then the names of the captured Death Eaters started to circulate in the school. People who were closely related to Death Eaters that had been caught or killed in the fight were now outcasts, from their houses and from the rest of the school.

The school was also caught off guard by the fact that not all of the Death Eaters had been Slytherins; roughly a fourth of the Death Eaters that had been caught or killed had been Ravenclaws and there were also a few others from other houses. Overnight, the house of Ravenclaw had become synonymous with Death Eaters as Slytherin had for decades. However, Ravenclaw didn't have the house unity and internal support that Slytherin had; already the house was starting to crack under the pressure.

Distrust began to spread throughout the school.

It was the Monday three days after Halloween and Harry was out of classes early due to a free spot on his schedule. The others were still in classes but, having nothing else to do (at least nothing he wanted to do), he started making his way over to the Room of Requirements early.

"Potter…"

The voice behind him made Harry turn, coming face to face with a Slytherin around his age.

"Blaise Zabini," the other introduced himself, "I don't think we've ever spoken, but I'm in your year. Of course, I'm a Slytherin so there wasn't much opportunity. May I speak to you?" Zabini wore his house crest with pride, Harry noticed absently.

"Of course," Harry said, "What would you like to talk about?" There was stress in Zabini's posture, Harry noted, studying the Slytherin. He could also see faint bags under the other's eyes.

"You might also recognize my family name from one of the recent Daily Prophets," Zabini continued, "You'll find my father's name in the list of the dead," he didn't bother to say that the only dead in that battle were Death Eaters, "and my mother's name in the list of captured Death Eaters awaiting trial."

"Ah," Harry said simply, the other Slytherin's purpose becoming clearer.

"The Zabinis have always been neutral in the war between light and dark families," Blaise said calmly, though showing small signs of nervousness, "My father may have gone into that fight under his free will, I don't know; I will not speak excuses for him. My mother, however, would _never_ have participated in such an attack. I am convinced that she had an imperious curse on her at the time. I will…I will do _anything_ if you prevent her from going to Azkaban."

"What makes you think that I have that power?" Harry asked casually.

"You're the boy-who-lived," Zabini said simply, "You stood up to Dumbledore earlier this year with a power than none of us expected you to have. If anyone can keep her out of Azkaban, it's you."

"And you'd rather be in my debt than in Dumbledore's," Harry said astutely, "Okay."

"Okay?" Zabini repeated, confused.

"Okay, I'll do it. If she's innocent, of course."

Zabini wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth (even if he _was _suspicious of what Harry expected as payment) so he thanked Harry and quickly left. Harry watched him go and then turned back to his original path, thinking. It shouldn't that hard, he thought, Serphenia could deliver some letters for him now that she wasn't busy, having delivered all the Portkeys to the Death Eaters that had planned to dessert. Harry had time to write a couple letters to the Daily Prophet and the Ministry. He might even be able to get the innocent people back to their homes before the end of the week, if he caused enough of an uproar.

The news that some of the people he had killed might have been under the imperious curse wasn't a big blow to him. They had known all along that many of the people that they would kill might be innocents, had even been prepared for it. This was, however, war, and no matter how they might have liked to bring all of the Death Eaters in for questioning, it wasn't a possibility. But Harry could save as many now as he could. No innocent person deserved Azkaban.

"Hey Potter!" With a slight sense of déjà vu that Harry turned around to greet the person who had called his name. It was with some surprise that he recognized Ernie Macmillan the Hufflepuff.

"I was just wondering," Ernie started loudly, "Well, I mean, a lot of us whose families were attacked were wondering…Well, we felt like we should have been able to do something to help, you know? And even though we were all kinda taken aback by how you treated Dumbledore earlier…I mean, I'm sure you had your reasons and we're all fine with that. The point is we _need_ the DA. We really learned a lot of important stuff last year. I'm sure you'd enjoy it as much as we would. And…Well, that's all but we'd all think it was really great if you started the DA again."

Harry watched Ernie talk, a little nonplussed; first of all, was he talking about just himself or other people as well? And then when had Ernie ever gotten the impression that Harry would enjoy leading a club called 'Dumbledore's Army'? Not that he wouldn't enjoy teaching again…

"Um, that's nice Ernie," Harry said, "I'm not sure whether or not I'll reopen the DA but you'll be the first person to know, okay?"

It was a clear dismissal and the Hufflepuff went off in the other direction with only a quick 'Well, I'm sure we'd all appreciate it'. Once more, Harry continued on his way, this time traveling down the passageway quite a distance before he was stopped,

"Potter!" The voice was brisk and female. Harry turned and saw Millicent Bulstrode walking towards him from a perpendicular corridor. Her father had been killed in the attacks but her mother was safely out of the reach of the ministry so the reason she approached him couldn't have been the same as Zabini's.

"Yes?"

"I approach you as a member of Slytherin house but not on behalf of it," Bulstrode started formally, "Everyone's curious as to what you're going to do. You've made it clear that you don't like Dumbledore…"

"Well, I'm not about to start joining Voldemort or Fudge, either," Harry interjected cheerfully.

"…And you don't have any…followers," Bulstrode said the last word with an air of distaste, ignoring Harry's interruption, "Apart from a few tag-alongs."

"Friends," Harry corrected, "I'm pretty sure that's the politically correct term for them. So pretty much you want to know whose side I'm on?" The girl was silent. "Well, I'm not really on either side. Really, I was hoping to make a neutral side but it's really hard work being neutral. I still might, though; I mean, it looks like I'm already heading in that direction. My ultimate goal, I suppose, is to take over Hogwarts." He looked thoughtful.

Bulstrode raised an eyebrow,

"I get the feeling that your reason behind that goal isn't just to take over the wizarding world through the minds of the children. Care to share?"

"Let's just say that I don't think Dumbledore deserves his position," Harry said, "Now, if this interview is over…?" Bulstrode left quickly.

Harry went on his way again, hoping for no more interruptions. In the true manner of one who has bad karma, it wasn't long until Harry was ambused, this time by four people: Terry Boot, Anthony Goldstein, Lisa Turpin, and Padma Patil.

"Let me guess," Harry said, sighing, "You're either representatives from Ravenclaw or you want me to open a study group with you."

"The first one," Lisa Turpin said quietly, smiling.

"Okay, so I know you're representatives from Ravenclaw," Harry said cheerfully, "That's halfway to the point of this conversation. Let's see…You want to hire me as a mercenary, you want me to keep your dear mummies and daddies out of Azkaban, you want me to redeem your house (ignoring the fact that I'm not a Ravenclaw), or you want me to kick Dumbles out of Hogwarts."

"Oh, but you make it sound so silly!" Padma cried, upset.

"A little bit of each, I think," Lisa said with her conservative smile, "Except the last one. But you can do that to, if you want."

"Hold on!" Terry cried, "We're not hiring anybody as a mercenary!"

"That's the problem with representatives," Harry said conversationally, "Is that they never properly represent the people they're representing. Or they never agree on how the people that they're representing want to be represented."

Lisa looked at Terry with wide, innocent eyes (Harry shuddered; she reminded him far too much of Luna and Rowena),

"You don't want Harry to defeat Voldemort?"

"Well yes, but…"

"Doesn't the whole wizarding world expect Harry to get rid of Voldemort once and for all?"

"Well, I suppose, but that's not…"

"Isn't it?"

Twenty minutes later, Harry had gotten rid of the Ravenclaws after liberal assurances that he already had plans to keep any innocents out of Azkaban and that, if it coincided with his schedule, he would give Ravenclaw house a hand with the rumors (they weren't very happy with this feeble reassurance but it was all that they got). If, Harry had said, they needed that sort of help, then they should go to either Luna or Ginny, not him. They had left looking slightly disgruntled.

"Mr. Potter…If I could have a word…?" The words were polite but they were said in the same sympathetic tone as ever. Rolling his eyes, Harry turned to see the Headmaster coming towards him.

"What do you want?" Harry asked shortly.

"Well, as you might remember, there was to be a ceremony on Halloween for you to accept your position as Heir of Slytherin and Gryffindor."

"Yes, and?"

"Well, obviously, the ceremony never happened. It has been decided that there will be a smaller one on Christmas."

"That's nice," Harry said, "If that's all…?"

Slightly put-off by Harry's rudeness, Dumbledore said,

"That's all. You may go."

"Thank you," Harry said sarcastically and left.

He was almost to the Room of Requirements when he encountered his last interruption. Classes had just ended (so much for his free period) and the halls were flooded with students. So when Harry saw Neville, walking away from Divination, the half-Slytherin called him over.

"Hey, Neville!"

"Hi Harry," Neville said, making his way over to Harry. Harry noticed a slightly rumpled, official-looking letter clutched in the other boy's hands.

"I heard your grandmother was attacked," Harry said offhandedly.

"Yeah," Neville said nervously, "But the letter said that she was alright."

"That's good. So I'll see you tonight then?"

"Yeah. Oh, and Hannah says that she can't make it. Her family was also attacked and I heard that her mom was badly injured."

Harry was conducting un-official tutoring sessions in the Room of Requirements (he was practically living in the Room nowadays) ever since Neville had asked an innocent question during potions. _"I don't get it…Do you think you could get the same teacher for me as your friend that used to be horrible at potions got?"_ After nearly falling over laughing at the irony, Harry had been forced to say that no, that had been a special case because that man had been his friend's godfather but if Neville was okay with it, maybe Harry could help out…? Within the week, he had had a dozen pleas from other students that were having trouble with potions. Others that had wanted help with defense were refused, however, as Harry didn't want another DA.

Finally, Harry made it to the Room of Requirements, where Luna was already waiting.

"You're house is conspiring against me," Harry complained.

Luna smiled fondly,

"They do tend to do that, don't they?"

"Anyways, can I talk to you later?" Harry asked, "We really need to…catch up."

"Of course," Luna said.

"Sorry I'm late!" Draco said, appearing at the door. He stopped to hold the door open for Ginny, who arrived just seconds later, "I got cornered by no less than _four_ members of your house," he complained to Harry, "trying to get me to get them on your good side. And then your brother," He directed this comment to Ginny, "telling me to 'leave his best friend alone'. Behind on the times much?"

Ginny sniffed,

"He's not my brother. Even if he is."

Harry snorted derisively,

"Yeah? Well, I was ambushed by two Slytherins, a Hufflepuff, four Ravenclaws, a Gryffindor, and the Headmaster."

"Why did you have to go get into _politics_?" Draco whined, "It's getting hard to get _anywhere_ in the halls without running into people who want to be your friend."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"You wanted to talk to me?" Luna asked. Draco and Helga had each gone off somewhere (probably a prank) and Luna and Harry were alone in the Room of Requirements.

"Well, I haven't really got a chance to…Well, explain everything. And I've got something of a problem I was wondering if you could help me with."

When Draco had first remembered his life as Godric, Harry had explained both of his lives mostly from an emotional standpoint. When Ginny had confronted him, Harry had given her a watered-down version of events, explaining his lives as more of adventures and a series of never-ending trials. To Luna, however, Harry did his best to give her only pure facts. He was tired of retelling everything that had happened but he didn't skip over any of the more horrible parts, as he had with Ginny, nor did he omit recent events that he hadn't told the others about (like the shadow that he had seen in the Chamber of Secrets).

Because he had planned to tell Luna all of this, he had layered the already heavily-warded room with even more wards. Last time that he had pointed out inconsistencies between different people's memories, the shadow had appeared. Thankfully, there were no signs of the shadow this time, nor did Luna panic as Ginny had over the strange discrepancy.

Luna looked at him thoughtfully,

"So you're part angel…Huh. Well, I've heard of angels, of course, but not much actual fact is known about them. I mean, everyone thinks that they're a myth so anything written about them isn't considered actual fact. And…Well, I don't suppose that I need to tell you that it would be very bad if you lost all of your white feathers? Balance, of course, is important…But you already know all of this.

"And this wasn't the matter that you wanted my opinion on, was it? You want to know if I know about this shadow-creature or the differences between what everyone remembers, right? Well, now that you mention it…I can remember conflicting events. Two…No, at least three different series of events. And I've no idea which really happened."

"Three?" Harry asked, surprised.

"At least three," Luna affirmed. She looked thoughtful, "If you gave me good resources and a month of time alone, I might be able to figure out what's going on. As it is, I have school to worry about as well as social things; friends, pranks, relations with the school, and figuring out what's happening with Voldemort and Hogwarts. My resources, too, are limited."

Harry narrowed his eyes in thought,

"I can probably get you any books you ask for but time…Is more difficult. You might be able to get a time-turner but the complications behind such a thing…If I were to get you the best of books, how long do you think it would take you to find out what the shadow-thing is, with your usual school schedule."

Luna frowned,

"At least half a year, I would think. Unless someone knew exactly which books I would need beforehand, trial-and-error will be tedious and take several months. And that's assuming that what's happening right now has ever happened to anyone who had a chance to write it down."

Harry made up his mind,

"I have access to hundreds, no, thousands of galleons. It's all a letter to Gringotts away. You're welcome to whatever books I have, and order whatever books you think you'll need from bookstores. Give me a list of books you need that can't be obtained from simple bookstores and I'll find a way to obtain them for you. You don't have to spend every waking moment on this but…please…do your best."

"Of course I will," Luna said sharply, "This is my curiosity as much as yours. And don't think that I'd let a friend struggle like this without doing anything to help. Researching is my specialty, and if you need something researched, I'll find what you need to know. Show me where you keep your books and I'll get started."

"Even the dark ones?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow.

"ALL of your books," Luna said, "If I'm already a dark witch by ministry standards, just because I learned some light spells that were later reclassified; I won't let it restrict my resources now."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Severus Snape had a headache. Maybe it had something to do with the eventful Halloween just four days ago. Maybe it had something to do with the strange dream that had forced him out of bed earlier that morning. Maybe it had something to do with the three cauldrons that had exploded over the course of the day or the class of fifth year brats that were currently brewing potions. Or maybe it was just Potter's fault. Yes, Potter's fault…that sounded about right.

There were only so many things that he could ignore. Coming face to face with his godson in the middle of a battlefield (it was some reassurance that his godson wasn't on the other side, at least) and then a Potter and Weasley in quick succession wasn't something that he could ignore easily. Not that anything that had happened earlier that year was easy to forget (or twenty years ago, for that matter). And the name Evan had been thrown around too often in the last few days for his comfort.

The bell rang and Snape quickly dismissed the class, planning on locking himself in his rooms, maybe getting a couple hours of extra sleep before he started correcting the first years' essays.

"Excuse me, Professor? I need to talk to you about this potion."

Snape frowned. _Great,_ he inwardly groaned, _It's one of Potter's group…One of those who've gone through a complete personality change and now eats out of the palm of his hand. _

"Make it quick," He said aloud.

"I just wanted to know…I mean, isn't this unnecessarily difficult…?" Lovegood asked. Snape waited with (what seemed to him to be) an enormous amount of patience for her to get to her point. He dimly registered the fact that the last of the students had trickled out of the room and the door had closed with a muffled click.

"…Why don't you just talk to Harry?" That was _not_ Lovegood. Snape looked up sharply to see the Weasley girl standing in front of him next to Lovegood. Then her words trickled into his brain.

"I don't know what you've heard," Snape hissed, "But I have no obligation to talk to _anyone_ and that includes you two! If you've no questions concerning potions, then get out of this classroom!"

The Lovegood girl looked at him with a strangely curious expression, as if she was observing an interesting specimen,

"He's lied to you. And now you're mad at him. I can understand…We did the same thing. But he's your friend as he is ours. If you can't forgive…Harry's hurting, even if he won't admit it. If you were truly anybody's friend, you wouldn't let this continue."

"It's very simple," Weasley said, "You're his friend, or you're not. And I think you _are_ his friend…"

"OUT!" Snape roared. The two girls left without another world.

…If only Snape's doubts would leave so easily.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

…And next chapter, you get to see more on Snape being forced to think!

So, here are the spells. A few don't have effects listed, sorry about that. Please keep in mind that I'm always open to new spell or prank ideas :D And since someone has asked, other people can borrow my spells, though some amount of credit would be appreciated.

Spell Inventory:

**Godric's Spells:**

_Inflammatio: _causes something (or someone) to burn really hot very quickly

_Ignisduro_: creates great stream of fire from the wand

_Cadocernuus_: causes opponent to fall to the ground

_Vulnero: _slashing curse

_Candidus macellarius_: "white slaughter-house" repeatedly stabs enemies with multiple swords of pure light

_Aureusacies:__ creates blade of golden or white light from the end of wand_

_Divinus trucido: "__divine massacre" Obliterates everyone and everything within a certain distance. Kills both enemies and allies_

_Tempestas aequitas:_ Creates lightning that electrocutes all targets (according to who the caster wants to be hit by it). Takes up more magic if there are more targets

_Truculenter constro:_ Causes targets to fall to the ground in chains (wrapped very tightly)

_Multivinculum:_ Ties up multiple people in ropes

**Salazar's Spells:**

_Transportation spell_: Incantation: none. Can transport multiple people. Appearance: rainbow lights, roaring sound.

_Cassesium_: Silver spell, creates chains. One spell can bind only one person

_Obrigesco constrinxi:_ "Freeze bind" Bright blue binding spell

_Subsistere:_ Binding spell

_Lumen caecus_: Creates blinding light. Doesn't affect caster.

_Sepelionoce_: Destroys/tears at everything nearby

_Ingenstremo: _Causes earthquake

_Vindicto: _"Revenge curse" actually a shield (black) that absorbs enemies spells, then sends pieces of itself at those who attacked it

_Aerdesolo:_ Causes air around person to disappear so that they can't breath

_Sanctiveritas: _Forces person to speak the truth

_Collum Angustus_: Closes up throat so that victim cannot breath.

_Supplanto_: trips opponent

_Somnodormio: _Causes multiple opponents to fall asleep (narrow range, can't hit more than a couple targets at a time)

_Scindo: _Dismemberment curse

**Rowena's Spells:**

**_Onerometuo_****: Makes the foe blinded by terror**

Inferiavaco: "Dead man's call" cruel spell: has people called by dead relatives, friends, people they had killed…entirely mental.

_Aerisjaculum_: "Air javelin" sends multiple invisible spears at enemies

_Letifer offensio_: Knocks opponent unconscious

_Madide ingravesco_: Causes opponent to become drunk

_Fierialienus_: Makes opponents think their friends are their enemies

_Armadilabor_: Makes weapons (except for wands) disappear, turn to ash, or simply fall apart depending on the power used

_Pluoigneus_:Rains acid on battle field

_Linguabardus_: Causes opponent to forget speech (including spells)

_Timeo infelicitas_: "Fear curse" causes extreme paranoia

_Volatilisiurs:_ "Winged justice"

_Caelumestitia:_ "Heavens' misfortune"

_Aquaonis_: "Water tornado"

_Multivinculum:_ Ties up multiple people in ropes

**Helga's Spells:**

_Plurabestia lacerta_: Turns multiple people into lizards

_Terracapto: _Creates large sinkhole that closes up abruptly, trapping those caught in it underground to die

_Cealestis calculus_: Causes shower of rocks (meteors) from the sky that blast opponent

_Laqueus labrusca__: Causes vines to grow out of the ground and grab all intended targets_

_Fioignavus: __Anesthetic curse that also works to get someone to "not care" about battle_

Desinoutroque: Stops everyone except for the caster completely (effectively freezes time in immediate area)

_Atroxequitas: __"Terrible justice"_

_Atterotutis: __Destroys opponent's shields_

_Pluresturbo_: Creates multiple tornadoes to be directed by caster

_Fungitumulcus:_ Similar to sinkhole curse; wave(s) of dirt rises up and buries opponents


	26. Musings

Well, that took longer than I'd hoped. Ah, well. Another short chapter; enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty-Six: Musings**

The room was dark. That was the first thing that Snape noticed when he arrived at his rooms. It was still mid-afternoon; if it had been any other part of the castle, the rooms would be glowing with sunlight. However, it was always dark in the dungeons. The only source of light in all of his rooms was the fire burning low in the fireplace; the house-elves must have done that for him. Slowly, as if in a trance, he sat himself on a big, green armchair and stared into the fire. The darkness loomed all around him, oppressive, as he stared into that one, dying light.

Suddenly he jumped up and lit the room with a wave of his wand. Restless, he began to pace…He couldn't ignore everything that was going on around him. There had been a line…Somewhere, Snape had crossed a line and he just couldn't go on ignoring everything. When Harry had confronted him on that one stormy night, the anniversary of Evan's departure…When Harry had behaved rudely to Dumbledore at the start-of-term feast…Even when Harry had removed Snape's own Dark Mark…Somehow, Snape had been able to ignore all of these things.

For months, Snape had convinced himself that it wasn't any of his business; that he didn't care; that he was happier not knowing or that Potter was just trying to mess with his head. But he was a Slytherin, wasn't he? Wasn't it a Slytherin's business to know other peoples' business, for blackmail or for forcing alliances? Or to just _know_; blissful as ignorance could be, it could also get you killed.

When had he turned to running away from his problems?

"…_I think you__** are**__ his friend…"_

What gave Weasley the _right_ to be so sure? What had given her the confidence behind her words? Snape laughed bitterly; even if he had ever been anybody's friend, he certainly wasn't any more.

And then there was the pure shock and horror of coming face to face with his godson in the middle of a battlefield. Perhaps his godson might have been fighting on his side but being there his knowledge…Such a risky, _Gryffindorish_ thing. Was it Potter's fault? Potter had definitely been out there as well…Or maybe Potter was just a bad influence on Draco. No, it was _more_ than that.

_When_ had all this change started? This upheaval of what he had believed to be good and normal? With…Evan? But no, something had been different, even before that. What had been the _first_ unusual thing that he'd noted about Potter? After his godfather's death, he'd been withdrawn, sure, but that was to be expected and Snape had not seen him very much at the time. When he'd gone to pick Potter up over the summer…Potter had been a bit overly cheerful compared to how he'd been after his godfather's death (an act?).

Potter's friendship with Draco had been the first, Snape realized. Other strange things had happened (like Fawkes coming out to greet them) but they weren't, well, _ab_normal, considering that it was Potter. And though it wasn't altogether strange that Potter had accepted Draco's friendship, it had been strange that Potter had been so…easygoing about it. Draco and Potter had never been anything close to friends but Potter had quickly become so friendly towards Snape's godson; not just polite but _comfortable_…

And there had been the way Potter had so easily adapted to Snape's house. It had almost unnerved the Head of Slytherin, though he had attributed it to the Gryffindor's Parseltongue abilities at the time. Potter had even known that the regal-looking lady (one of the few _human_ portraits in the manor) could speak Parseltongue. Had he recognized her?

What else…There had been a trunk, hadn't there? A green one with decorations of silver snakes that had seemed too _Slytherin_ for the boy at the time. Now…Snape wasn't sure. The thing that had most troubled Snape, though, was the question of how the boy had gotten it. The whole Order knew that Potter wasn't allowed outside of his relatives' house for the whole summer. Had Potter had it for quite some time? Or had he given his watchers the slip and gone to buy it himself? Perhaps Potter had some friend that had been able to give it to him? But, no…visitors at Potter's house were monitored and his mail had all been intercepted.

Then, well, _Evan_ had happened. Or, to be more specific, Potter had come to Snape and unlocked his memories of 'Evan'. And Snape had reacted…badly. It had been his right at the time, he had thought. Now he wasn't so sure.

"_I don't care if you're a Gryffindor…I don't want to hate you…"_

Hadn't Snape _chosen_ for this to happen? Twenty years ago, hadn't he asked 'Evan' to return his memories _no matter what_? The beginnings of regret stirred inside of him. But what did it matter? What was done was done! What he had done…Actions like that couldn't be taken back.

"_Harry's hurting…If you were truly anyone's friend, you wouldn't let this continue…"_

Snape pushed those thoughts aside. And after Snape had regained his memories, Potter had started acting even stranger and, worse, Draco seemed to have picked it up from him. The two of them seemed to know _something_ that Snape didn't and definitely began avoiding him after that night.

Then school had started. The start-of-year feast…Snape would have said that it was a disaster except he wasn't sure whom it had been a disaster for. The Headmaster, certainly, but Snape's loyalties towards that man were flimsy at best. If neither loyal to Voldemort nor loyal to Dumbledore, where did his loyalties lie? Snape brushed these thoughts away impatiently. Wasn't this how he'd been living for several years, no, his whole life? Loyalties were unnecessary, possibly dangerous. Still, it was a lonely existence…

The night of the start-of-year feast Snape had honestly thought that he was going to die. He could feel his magic slipping away through the Dark Mark and, though he had several potions brewing to counteract the effects, Snape didn't honestly believe that he could have held off Voldemort for more than a couple weeks. He hadn't thought that he would have died exactly that night but he wouldn't have lasted for long if Potter had not…helped.

Snape still had mixed feelings about that encounter. The easy communication between his godson and Potter had shocked him. Potter's interference with his Dark Mark and the resulting confrontation with Voldemort gave him a headache to even think about. Because the question still remained: where had Potter learned any of that? Book-learning was all well and good but there weren't books on those types of things; at least not within Potter's (or even Snape's) reach. Even if he _had_ gotten his hands on some super-rare book, Potter could hardly have learned all that. There was still the question of _when_.

And Potter had claimed that he was not Potter. In Parseltongue. But Parseltongue didn't take kindly to those who tried to lie in it. That's what 'Evan' had taught Snape and Snape had known better than to try. Had Potter been lying? Or was Potter using an old Slytherin play on words and mind, where one was convinced that their identity was a 'mask'. Or Potter might have truly not been Potter at the time. Possession? Polyjuice?

"_Thanks for being such a bastard to my brother!"_

Snape had seen this person called Evan recently hadn't he? Assuming that the person that night hadn't been Potter, it was probably Potter that he had been referring to…but the person had called himself Evan and said that they'd met. On the other hand if the person _had_ been Potter, which made a lot more sense, to whom had he been referring? Draco? Snape _had_ been avoiding his godson but in that context, it wouldn't have made any sense. The Evan of the present definitely looked very different from the Potter-clone Evan that Snape remembered.

After the start-of-term feast, things had been pretty tame (ignoring the odd prank here and there). Over the next few months Weasley and then Lovegood had fallen prey to the same abrupt change in attitude. And then, of course, Halloween had happened.

As for the question of how Potter had learned how to remove his mark (and the other strange things that Potter could suddenly do)…did Potter have a teacher? Maybe that mysterious person that had been seen around school? But that person had been Potter. Or at least Evan…Weren't they the same person? This person Evan (along with a person calling herself 'Selene') had been seen many times around the school since Halloween and Moody seemed to have known of him even before the holiday. Of course, 'Evan' and 'Selene' had been teachers on Halloween, at the same time as Snape had seen Potter away from school. A time-turner? That was the only thing that made sense; Potter and his friends had deflected seven near-simultaneous attacks at entirely different places. That might also explain Potter's…adventure…over the summer. Traveling twenty years into the past was no mean feat.

But the battle on Halloween disturbed him more than that. Even if Potter had gotten his hands on a time-turner…He had done more than just running off to fight Death Eaters. Potter had fought Death Eaters _and won_. Order members that participated in the battle had reported that they had seen only _one_ mysterious helper at each house except at the Longbottoms and the battle at the Ministry (and even in the chaos of those two battles, many people were sure that there hadn't been more than two helpers). Potter had not only fought but fought _well_ and also managed to get back to school unharmed. And though there were reports that one of the helpers had been injured, all four of Potter's group had been seen the next day in perfect condition.

He had saved Snape's life.

But no matter what had happened in the last week or even last few months, there was still annoyingly little to go on. So what was left? Snape uneasily allowed himself to think about the best friend that apparently he had never had.

At first, nothing had seemed out of the ordinary about Evan, except that Severus had found him unconscious in the dungeons before the other boy was even a student. Physically, he looked exactly like Potter did now, except he hadn't needed glasses. Dumbledore's explanation of his presence had been sketchy at best and there had been nothing ordinary about the fact that Evan had been sorted into both Slytherin and Gryffindor House. He had quickly adapted to this new role and had befriended both Severus and the werewolf. Lupin, Snape could understand, but his younger self…? Had it been morbid curiosity or spite that had driven Potter to forge the friendship? Or had it been something else?

Despite the fact that, in his own time, Snape was twenty years his senior and hated all Potters with a passion, Potter had struck up an almost mentoring relationship with Severus. He'd taught him pranks and even Dark Arts later on. Snape frowned; again there was the question of when or where Potter had learned the darker magic. Evan had not, Snape also noted, been instant friends with any of the marauders (save, perhaps, Lupin). Eventually, though, Evan had managed to win over Potter and Black, though he was always cold towards Pettigrew. Now Snape knew why.

What had happened next…? The Marauder's Rulebook. Severus had clung onto the puzzle of the Rulebook in his own time, even if he had never mentioned it. Now that Snape had these memories back, the most obvious puzzle remained the same. Had the Rulebook really recognized Evan? The Rulebook had been created hundreds of years before either of their births. Was this more time travel, then? There was no saying that his time with Severus was the only time he had been to the past. Perhaps Potter had learned all of his obscure magic in the past…

Four original Marauders, one of which the other three claimed to be Potter. Three more…long dead? Of course, Potter had three sudden new friends…It was too much of a leap of logic, Snape sighed, frustrated, he would become as bad as Moody if he kept this up. Then again, he _had_ heard some of the others call the Weasley girl 'Stripe' occasionally…

To the next event in the past, then: it had gotten out that Evan was a Parselmouth. Well, that was no surprise in the present, except that Snape had always had a hard time thinking of Potter as having such a, well, _Slytherin_ talent. Evan had distanced himself from everyone to spend time with a cat that had appeared out of nowhere.

Then Evan had been kidnapped…And Snape had become a spy for the Dumbledore. Snape's stomach sank. Was this the reason, then? Potter might have become his friend if he knew that it was his responsibility to the light…But, no. That was too much like the 'old' Potter, before his abrupt personality shift over the summer. Or maybe the Potter that had thought like that had never existed. Had Snape been too blinded by prejudice when looking at Potter?

After Evan's kidnapping, he had began teaching Severus many useful things. That useful teleporting spell, Occlumency, Parseltongue…even some potions! What useful thing _hadn't_ Evan taught him? But then, a rebellious part of Snape muttered, he had only been teaching Severus as a spy. In reality, Evan had had the power all along to release Severus from the Dark Mark. Snape's rational side pointed out that the past couldn't be changed.

Even as Evan was teaching Severus, the time traveler was always sneaking off. Severus had caught Evan a couple times, talking to Death Eaters. Trying to convince them out of Voldemort's service? But he had known that he couldn't change the past…But he could sit on their change of loyalty for twenty years until he let them all out of Voldemort's service. It seemed farfetched…But even the Order had been surprised by the sheer number of Death Eaters that had deserted Voldemort on Halloween. There had been some organization there.

Then there had been the Halloween Ball, Evan's final goodbye…And he had been gone. Memories after that faded away into the familiar obscurity of events long passed.

Snape reviewed what he had accepted with some disappointment. Even Snape accepted every strange thing that he had seen twenty years ago…It wasn't enough to reach any conclusions. And really, he _didn't_ want to accept the events of twenty years ago. That meant either accepting that he'd been friends with Potter or Evan had never been his friend to begin with. It could be said that there were even more riddles than before.

The biggest puzzle, he supposed, was that Evan had demonstrated knowledge that Harry had never had opportunity to obtain; if he was looking for the cause, the past was the wrong place to look.

So what to do? Confront Potter? Pretend that he was still living in denial? Apologize (did he really have anything to apologize for)? Look for 'Evan' who wasn't?

"_Isn't this unnecessarily difficult…?"_

Snape remembered the dream that he'd had the night before. He had been caught in an Acromantla's web while his own, younger voice berated him from somewhere out of sight. There was a haunting green…

And when the light changed, it wasn't a spider's web he was caught in but an abstract chessboard. Even though every square was grey and twisted, he was sure it was a chessboard; it was, after all, his dream. His younger voice was crying now, begging for forgiveness to someone who wasn't there. Telling Evan over and over that he'd never hate him.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

_Dear Ms Skeeter,_

_I'm sure that, as an experienced reporter, you have your ear open for gossip, so I won't bother repeating the latest. However, the Halloween Battles are something that you have yet to cover – but of course you haven't; your specialty is scandal, not a handful of Death Eaters dead and imprisoned. No matter what gossip you may have heard on the matter. To the wizarding world, these Death Eaters are a sign of the ministry's determination and power and you'd need more than empty accusations to undermine that._

_However, certain atrocities have come to my attention that I feel must be made public. The minister, Dumbledore, and the wizarding world are all at fault; I'll let you decide your own slant to my words. I only request that you keep me anonymous and let me set down a few guidelines._

_I have enclosed a Portkey that will be activated this afternoon at seven o'clock. Please meet me if you're interested._

_Sincerely,_

_Evan Hasoc_

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

_Dear Remus,_

_This week's been pretty hectic, huh? Dumbledore's been having lots of people come around and ask us every detail about the classes we had on Halloween (especially the teachers of said classes). But you already know that, don't you?_

_Us students have heard that 'Auror Tonks' has been appointed as our guard but nobody's seen her except the first day. Have you seen her much? I think I'd like to say 'hi' but I've never gotten the chance. Has she been pretending to be a student? Because I'd never tell if she changed her face a little and put on a uniform. If she is, tell me which house?_

_Yeah, I know that you think that I should be more polite to Dumbledore but, really, I've never seen reason to. Try and convince me otherwise, if you want, but you won't be successful. Did Dumbledore put you up to this?_

_Oh, I just remembered. You know how you said I could come over for tea this afternoon? Something came up. Maybe tomorrow afternoon?_

_-Harry_

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

_Excerpts from the Daily Prophet, November 4 1996, as written by Rita Skeeter_

_It has been assumed that the hundred wizards and witches taken into ministry custody on Halloween were not only innocent, but captured by our very own Aurors. However, this reporter knows otherwise…_

…_It has been known for some time that the Order of the Phoenix, a ragtag vigilante group rumored to be lead by Albus Dumbledore, has been known to accidentally capture innocents…_

…_an anonymous source has given me a list of no less than twenty names of 'Death Eaters' that he claims are innocent…_

…_Harry Potter has even come to me with evidence that, in fact, Sirius Black (who he reveals to be his own godfather) was framed and wrongfully sent to Azkaban. The-Boy-Who-Lived tells me that Dumbledore has also known this for some time. See page five for details on how Harry's godfather heroically fought the odds to protect his last tie to the life that Voldemort ruined and how this battle ultimately led to his demise…_

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Ugh. Pages of thinking and recap. Sooo bored. Well, the next chapter might have more fun?

Well, it seems that (unless I chicken out on the NaNoWriMo) I'll be working on Dark Angel very hard this month. Huh. I mean, it _would_ be nice to get at least a sizable portion finished by Christmas.


	27. A Slytherin's Plot

Another short chapter…Or normal chapter. Whatever.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty-Seven: A Slytherin's Plot**

The next month was very busy for Harry and his friends. Without any hint of direct involvement (except for that one instance when he had talked to Skeeter as Harry about Sirius) Harry managed to cause turmoil in the wizarding world. More specifically, he was doing his best to make them rewrite laws concerning 'fair' trials. If he had it his way, witnesses would all be required to drink ministry-brewed truth potions (but he grudgingly accepted that he _wouldn't_ get it his way for some time). He still found wizarding trials hopelessly disorganized and backwards but at least Harry felt like he was making progress. Nobody was out of jail yet but they were safely away from the dementors for the time being.

Harry's 'unofficial tutoring sessions' had expanded so much that he had been forced to grudgingly make it official. The Hogwarts Tutoring Club (Harry was surprised that the obvious name hadn't already been taking but all of the other Hogwarts tutoring clubs had fancy names) opened in mid-November and had caused a temporary sensation. Over a hundred students had showed up on the first day; mostly to see Harry Potter teaching potions. However its fame was short-lived; once students realized that it was a more-or-less normal club, many left in disgust.

Dubiously nicknamed HTC by some of the regular members, the Hogwarts Tutoring Club didn't get any of the clever nicknames that other clubs did. Some daring students had attempted to call it 'Hoggy's' for the first week or so but the business-like air of the club didn't fit with the name and they soon gave up. Not that the meetings themselves weren't fun but the whole club was strictly organized. Harry, Luna, Draco, and Ginny, each taught HTC for a couple of hours a week, going over things that the students had just learned in class and segregated by grade-level. However, they were starting to branch out to different areas of study not taught in the regular Hogwarts curriculum. Luna, however, had disappeared from most of her tutoring lessons (almost from sight altogether) as she dug deeper into her research. There were still a few pranks signed by her but Harry suspected those to be either the work of Claire or otherwise planned weeks in advance.

Like the DA, the HTC was hosted in the Room of Requirements but it absolutely refused any affiliation with the infamous club. To the best of Harry's knowledge, Ron and Hermione had re-opened the DA only to be met with failure. The spirit of rebellion and Harry's fame had been the key ingredients to keeping the DA running and, without either, the DA could only boast a handful of members (all Gryffindors).

Aside from causing political turmoil and starting a new club, Harry was juggling his duties to look after forty-odd renegade Death Eaters (thank Merlin for the help of the other founder reincarnations and spirits) and Dumbledore's constant pestering. Oh, right, Dumbledore…Harry pulled his attention back to the man in front of him. He was sure that he hadn't missed anything important but cast his memory back to the last couple minutes just incase.

"Now, Mr. Potter…" blah blah blah "…but poor Severus is quite beside himself with anger…" blah blah blah "…really must learn to control yourself…". Harry's hands tightened into firsts before he forced them to uncurl; 'Poor Severus' indeed. He had been right; he hadn't missed anything important. Dumbledore was just upset at the pranks because Harry was trying his hard to disrespect authority, not because of the school's reputation or anything else that Harry would believe for more than a second.

The half-Slytherin was sure that he'd been called to Dumbledore's office more in the past couple of months than most of the other students in Hogwarts put together. He absentmindedly wondered if he could get Rita to write an article on pedophiles with some nasty insinuations pointed towards the Headmaster…

Snape hadn't kicked up nearly the fuss that Dumbledore was implying, anyways. Actually, Snape had been rather quiet for a while. The potions teacher had shown almost no reaction to any of the latest pranks. Now the question was: was Harry supposed to take this as a peace offering and leave his potions teacher alone, or take his pranks one step further to start riling the other up again?

On the other hand, Dumbledore's compulsions were getting steadily worse and his infinite patience was cracking. Harry thought it was time for a new tactic. Pointless defiance was very fun and nice but it wasn't getting anything done (apart from impressing a few people which was a goal in itself). No, Harry thought he knew what would make things move along better. He just had to get everything prepared…

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Harry was busily scribbling Parseltongue on a long piece of parchment while the students around him were waiting for the class to begin. A few minutes later, Snape swept into the classroom, robes billowing and an intimidating look on his face (as always). Harry didn't pause; he hadn't actually gotten the chance to brew a potion in the class for several weeks due to Snape always finding fault in his behavior. He knew that his potions grade must really be suffering but couldn't bring himself to care overly much, no matter how proud he was of his potions skills.

"Today we will be working on _Love_ Potions," Snape sneered as means of introduction; obviously, he thought little of such potions, "starting with the Venustas Potion. However, we will not start working on said potions until tomorrow. Due to the violate nature of Love Potions, I have to spend the next two hours attempting to beat into your thick little skulls proper safety procedures. Whether or not you are capable of _retaining_ such knowledge remains to be seen.

"Now, can anyone tell me the key ingredient in most Love Potions?" The classroom was completely still and silent except for Hermione, who held up her hand half-heartedly. Predictably, Snape ignored her, looking around the classroom. His eyes fell on the table where Harry sat between Neville and Draco. Neville turned white; Draco looked at his godfather with a reluctant, somewhat guilty look on his face; and Harry scribbled away, not bothering to look up. After all, Snape had been ignoring him for _months_.

"Potter."

Harry snapped his head up to look at Snape, disbelief clear on his face,

"Excuse me?"

"Love Potions, Potter," Snape said impatiently, "I asked what the key ingredient usually is."

"Pomegranate seeds," Harry said somewhat mechanically. Well, this was a change. He wasn't sure whether he should be mad, curious, hopeful, or something else.

"What is the rarest ingredient?"

"Ashwinder eggs." Except ingredients from snakes were never hard for Salazar to find.

"Which mundane plants are of most use in Love Potions?"

"Peony, carnation…and sometimes mistletoe or rose."

"…Good, Potter." There were thuds from around the room as students fell of their chairs or banged their elbows on their desks in their hurry to look over at their teacher. Several Gryffindors were looking faint. Harry, himself, stared at Snape in outright shock for a second before narrowing his eyes and making his face blank.

Snape merely moved on and continued teaching the class.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Harry stood in front of the HTC, ready to re-teach today's potions lesson. Nearly all of the regular members were there; everyone in Harry's class had questions on the earlier lesson, younger students (Ravenclaws, mostly) wanted to study ahead or were there for later potions lessons, and older students wanted to review the topic incase it came up in their NEWTs. However, Harry had already used a spell that had people disloyal to HTC (mostly spies for Dumbledore like Ron and Hermione) rushing to their dormitories for books, the hospital wing (feeling suddenly nauseous), or the bathroom.

Now, casting a weak _Sonorus_ charm on himself so that his voice would be heard, Harry spoke to the whole room,

"Excuse me. Can I have everyone's attention for a minute? I'd just like to say something…Over the next few days, there might be some…changes…around Hogwarts. _No matter what happens_, this club will remain neutral and lessons will remain the same. I'm about to undertake a task which will require me to act like a different person; one which is strictly secret. Therefore, if you are incapable of keeping the secret, you will forget what I have told you before you disclose any information to anyone not in this club or if you are outside of this room." The Slytherins in particular were listening with complete attention.

"You might notice when the change is about to happen; during a meal, I will act as if I have a headache and leave the Great Hall early. Anything I say or do after that will be an act, unless it is in this room. That is all."

Canceling the charm on himself, he calmly began his lesson,

"We will now be reviewing Love Potions. You all know how this works; if you have any questions, they are to be asked at the end. Now, who can tell me the three 'types' of love?"

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Lunch in the Great Hall was the same as usual. There was a cheerful buzz filling the hall as many hungry students were able to fill their stomachs. As usual, the Ravenclaws were reading as they ate or else groaning over their latest tests ("I did so badly on that last test! A _ninety-four_ out of a hundred? I was so _stupid_ to have put that last answer! What did you get?"), Slytherins were talking politics ("I heard something really interesting was going to happen to the power balance pretty soon. Yes, here in Hogwarts. No, I can't tell you more."), and the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs were just chatting.

As had been the case since the newest wave of Marauders had hit Hogwarts, such (relative) peace did not last long. There was a bang and a poof of blue smoke (there were only a couple screams this time; most of the students were getting used to it) at the teacher's table. The whole school turned to stare incredulously at Dumbledore…who was now wearing a bumblebee suit.

Suddenly, a pair of giant hands clasped shut around the Headmaster and a childish voice began to sing,

_I'm bringing home my baby Dumble-bee  
Won't my Mommy be so proud of me  
I'm bringing home my baby Dumble-bee -  
OUCH!! It stung me!!_

The hands dropped Dumbledore but then one of the giant thumbs fell upon the Headmaster and none too gently.

_I'm squishin' up my baby Dumble-bee  
Won't my Mommy be so proud of me  
I'm squishin' up my baby Dumble-bee -  
EW!! What a mess!!_

Dumbledore was once again released from his latest abuse, only for a giant tongue to appear behind him.

_I'm lickin' up my baby Dumble-bee  
Won't my Mommy be so proud of me  
I'm lickin' up my baby Dumble-bee -  
ICK!! I feel sick!!  
_

"I would feel sick too," Harry muttered under his breath as he watched the scene unfold.

The tongue vanished and what looked to be several buckets-full of orange goo splattered over the 'Dumble-bee'.

_I'm barfin' up my baby Dumble-bee  
Won't my Mommy be so proud of me  
I'm barfin' up my baby Dumble-bee -  
OH!! What a mess!!_

A giant cloth descended out of the ceiling, held by the two giant hands. Using the cloth, the hands proceeded to 'wipe the floor' with Dumbledore. Literally.

_I'm wipin' up my baby Dumble-bee  
Won't my Mommy be so proud of me  
I'm wipin' up my baby Dumble-bee -  
OOPS!! Mommy's new towel!!_

Cheerfully, the hands picked up the cloth and gently lifted Dumbledore out of it, setting him down inside a large bowl of some sort of pudding (or were they mashed potatoes?) on the teacher's table.

_I'm wringin' out my baby Dumble-bee  
Won't my Mommy be so proud of me  
I'm wringing out my baby Dumble-bee -  
Bye-Bye baby Dumble-bee!!_

The hands finally vanished, leaving behind spirally letters spelling out 'Talon' on the wall behind the teacher's table.

Dumbledore wouldn't be able to get the striped costume off for the rest of the day.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Snape sat in his classroom after classes had just finished. Having thought about the subject for a while, he took out a piece of parchment and listed out all the strange things about Harry and 'Evan' that he had thought of the previous afternoon.

After some deliberation, he added to the list:

- _Glasses are definitely fake (on closer inspection, lenses don't distort things seen through them)_

- _Nicknames? (Do Sal, Rick, Rena, and Stripe mean anything? Is Stripe the same Stripe as in the Marauder's Rulebook?)_

_- Strange memory (if not Potter's, who's?)_

The last one, he felt somewhat uncomfortable writing down on paper. It was one of the many bigger puzzles but memories were generally private things. Not to mention that he was taking a large risk that someone would be able to find the paper. Snape briefly considered burning it but decided against it, instead layering the single piece of parchment with all of the privacy spells that he could think of (including Dark ones).

Why did the number of questions always multiply whenever he started looking for answers?

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

It was the second day after his announcement at HTC that Harry finally decided to make his move. He had already discussed it with all the other founder reincarnations, so everyone knew what was coming. Now he just had to throw away his pride…

Harry swirled his goblet of pumpkin juice contemplatively. He knew that it had to be today. The Slytherin-Gryffindor had been surprised and angry to find a strong Devotion Potion in his pumpkin juice, several steps up from the steadily escalating Compulsion Potions of the past several weeks. Then he had been uneasy.

Devotion Potions were very similar to Love Potions and contained several similar ingredients. As its name implied, it inspired pure devotion to the brewer (or the person who added a piece of themselves to the potion). The Headmaster was not a potions Master and therefore any potion that he used against Harry was very likely to be completely ineffective. This potion, for instance; Harry could tell without drinking it that Dumbledore had gotten his ashwinder eggs from a unreliable source and that he'd added the Crup Saliva too early. But it was only a matter of time, Harry thought with a shudder, before Dumbledore thought to grab one of Snape's potions and _then_ Harry would be in trouble. So far, Dumbledore seemed to think that Harry was merely unusually resistant to potions, not completely invulnerable to all but those brewed perfectly.

Dumbledore was watching him very closely.

Harry casually fiddled with his goblet a bit more before drinking some of its contents. His eyes widened. The reincarnated founder all but threw the goblet down with a loud clunk and grabbed his head.

"Hey, you all right?" Draco asked at his side. Neither Ginny nor Luna was present.

"I'm…fine…" Harry said distractedly, rubbing his scar and putting a confused expression on his face, "I've…got a headache. Look, I'll see you tomorrow, okay? I think I'll go get some sleep." He left the Hall hurriedly, perfectly aware of several pairs of eyes that were watching him closely.

After he had stumbled out of their line of vision, however, he allowed himself to straighten up and walk calmly towards the Gryffindor common room. He didn't walk too fast; no doubt Dumbledore was monitoring his progress through something similar to the Marauders' Map. Hogwarts, however, would warn Harry if it was anything more than that and the castle would also prevent any portraits from telling Dumbledore that Harry was _not_ actually suffering a strong headache. Harry even made sure to make particularly slow progress on stairs, pausing occasionally for breaks.

Reaching the Gryffindor common room, he staggered upstairs to his bed and then collapsed there. Harry then pretended to sleep, when in reality making sure that the potion made its way safely out of his bloodstream. Once finished with this task, he burrowed deep into his own mind, making sure that his Occlumency shields remained strong an all the right memories were on the right sides of the shields.

Finally, several hours later, Harry was interrupted by a soft tap on the window. The half-Gryffindor looked around, noting that all the Gryffindors were already asleep in their beds. The tapping came again and Harry got out of bed and opened the window. A large barn owl swooped silently in through the open window and landed on Harry's bed. It then stuck its leg out imperiously, allowing Harry to take the letter tied around its leg.

He was completely unsurprised to recognize Dumbledore's handwriting.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_I would like to talk to you about a certain Order that we are both familiar with. However, if you truly desire to have nothing to do with me, you may choose to stay away. I have no intention to force you to do something you don't want to._

_I only have your best interests at heart, my dear boy._

_My office is always open to you._

_The password is 'sugar quills'._

Knowing very well what the effects of the Devotion Potion dictated, Harry set off immediately, pausing only to grab his wand and invisibility cloak. His imaginary headache would, thankfully, be mostly gone by now but he still walked slowly as he made his way to the Headmaster's office. Of course, he _was_ wearing his invisibility cloak (it was long past curfew, after all) and all of its better effects would be completely nullified if he didn't walk quietly. Not that he thought he'd be caught; he just didn't want to have to meet Dumbledore any time soon.

Finally reaching the stone gargoyle that guarded the entrance to Dumbledore's office, Harry whispered the password. The gargoyle instantly sprang aside and, though Harry delayed as much as he could on the stairs, he was soon standing behind the large oak door. Plastering the most confused look that he could manage on his face, Harry raised his hand to knock on the door…

"Come in," Dumbledore called, before Harry's hand made it to the door. Harry quickly hid his scowl and pulled open the door.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Cliffhanger? Where? Looks around innocently

Oh, and the Dumble-bee song doesn't belong to me either (apart from the obvious substitution of 'bumblebee' for 'Dumble-bee'). It's just a children's song that was too tempting to _not_ put in. Ah, nostalgia.

Writer's block…building…36700 more words to go…That's what, twelve normal chapters? -.-U

Review?


	28. False Compliance

Thank you everyone for 1000 reviews:D

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty-Eight: **

"Ah, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore said as Harry entered his office, "Please sit down."

Harry sat down quickly in the large, plush chair, mentally reviewing the potion's effects. Harry was going for the effects of a weaker Devotion Potion rather than the full-power one he had found in his pumpkin juice. After all, if none of the other potions had worked, Dumbledore shouldn't be surprised that this one didn't completely work either.

A weakened Devotion Potion would set him back to a 'first-year' mindset, where he had respected and been in awe of the Headmaster. It would not, however, force him to be completely obedient to whatever the Headmaster wanted, nor would Harry be forced to become another sycophantic devotee of the man. Also, he could have periods of rebellion in which the 'real Harry' fought against the potion. Harry had always been particularly good at fighting against the Imperius curse, after all.

Harry had made sure that the only potion that he would 'allow' to work was one that the man had to brew himself. After all, the potion would have to be renewed every week and Harry couldn't afford Dumbledore to decide that a Snape-brewed potion might be fully effective against him. Any other potion that Dumbledore tried on him, Harry would either be able to nullify or pretend to drink without actually drinking any.

Right now, a victim of a weakened Devotion Potion would be confused. Their rational mind would be almost completely silenced but they wouldn't know which to trust more: these new feelings or the almost-silly older feelings towards the brewer. Also, the larger difference between the old feelings and the new feelings, the easier it was for a person to identify the new feelings as 'wrong'. Therefore, Dumbledore would have to be careful not to push Harry to hard.

"Now, Mr. Potter, do you know what you came here for?"

"…You can call me Harry, Professor," Harry said, rubbing his scar.

Dumbledore beamed at him,

"And, do you know what you came here for?"

Someone feeling the full effects of the potion would look up at him with adoration and say 'you wanted to see me' or with confusion 'I…I've said some really hurtful things recently that I didn't mean'. Harry just looked at Dumbledore uncertainly,

"You sent me a letter, right? About the Order?"

There was a flash of disappointment in Dumbledore's eyes but it was quickly covered up,

"Ah, yes. Voldemort has been making very bold moves recently and I was wondering if it wouldn't be best if you joined the Order of the Phoenix. You are already an honorary member, as far as Fawkes is concerned. Just look at how he has taken to you."

Harry hid his snigger behind a cough and said,

"Are Ron and Hermione going to join, too?"

"Of course."

"Then I won't join," Harry said stubbornly, "They…Well, I don't want to complain and I don't know if you'll believe me but…They betrayed me. I can't just go back to being their friend."

"Is this the reason that you've distanced yourself from them," Dumbledore asked shrewdly. Dumbledore must have realized that pushing for a friendship between Harry and his old friends would be going too far for the Devotion Potion to handle.

Harry looked down and nodded.

"My dear boy," Dumbledore said, "Why didn't you come to me earlier. Is there anything else that I should know about?"

Harry bit his lip,

"I…Everything else is fine, Headmaster."

"Then if I don't allow Ron and Hermione to join the Order, you will join?"

It really was a tempting offer and Harry hesitated for a second. If Dumbledore actually let him into Order meetings, it would be even better than Claire's crystal ball because being physically there meant being able to influence events. On the other hand, it would mean publicly being under Dumbledore's thumb and even less free time.

"Yes," Harry said finally, "I would."

"I'm afraid, however," Dumbledore said, "That I can't extend the offer to all of your other friends. Young Mr. Malfoy isn't trusted by the Order members and I'm afraid Molly would have my head if I allowed Ginevra to join. Miss Lovegood, however…"

"I'm not sure if it'd be good if Luna joined the Order," Harry said, "She's sweet but rather silly; always going on about Blibbering Humdingers or Crumple-Horned Snorkacks. And I think she's really busy right now trying to find out about some 'undiscovered' creature or another."

"A sensible decision," Dumbledore said, "But it is getting late and you have classes tomorrow. Why don't you go to bed; I'll owl you with the time and date of the next Order meeting.

"And Harry," Dumbledore said as the student was leaving, "I am very sorry for all I've done. If you are uncomfortable with Severus teaching you Occlumency…"

Harry looked at Dumbledore for a long time; then turned to leave,

"Snape's fine, Headmaster. I'm sure your schedule is busy enough without having to accommodate me."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The next day, Dumbledore came to talk with Harry during dinner. He openly flaunted his use of Harry's first name and Harry's politeness towards him. After proving his point, he went back to his dinner.

Exactly eighty-three people were enraged by this show.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Occlumency again. Ugh. And Harry didn't even know how to act around Snape what with the Devotion Potion _and_ Snape's sudden change in attitude around Harry. Probably the same as usual, unless the Headmaster came up in the (usually nonexistent) conversation.

It was just Harry's luck that the Headmaster was the very _first_ topic that came up…

"Potter, what do you think of the Headmaster?" Snape asked, as soon as Harry walked in through the door.

"Well, he's a rather nice guy…" Harry said vaguely. Was Snape testing him? Trying to humiliate him? What did the other man expect?

"I find it curious that, though you showed all the symptoms of having ingested a potion that is aimed to change your mental state, as a potions master, I could see no such mar on you," Snape said casually.

"…Well it was worth the try."

"And just _why_ are you pretending to have a sudden, potion-induced respect for the Headmaster when in reality you have no such thing?"

"Well it was getting pretty tiring finding compulsion potions in all of my food," Harry said with a shrug.

"Compulsion potions…You _do_ know that that's illegal and that it could get the Headmaster kicked out of Hogwarts?"

"Well, yes, but only with sufficient proof. And then someone even _more_ incompetent will take over. It'll be easier if…" Harry paused; forcing himself to realize that it was _Snape_ he was talking to, "Anyways, don't we have an Occlumency lesson to start?"

"You know as well as I that the lessons are perfectly useless."

"Huh," Snape had always avoided admitting anything of the sort earlier. What had changed? "Whatever you may think, it's always useful to go back to the basics."

"You've changed the subject, _Potter_," Snape said. Then he sneered, "Aren't you ashamed of yourself, obeying Dumbledore's every command?"

…Was it just Harry's imagination or was Snape saying 'Potter' to remind him himself, not Harry, of whom he was talking to?

"Slytherin, remember?" Harry smirked, "We can be truly shameless…or ruthless…when we want to assure our own survival. Now, if we're not going to start the lesson, I'm leaving."

Snape let him leave, completely silent.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The first half of December passed quietly. Harry was still busy but any things seemed to have calmed down. One thing that had contributed to this was that many renegade Death Eaters had moved back into their houses, which had been heavily-warded, and only fifteen or so stayed in the Chamber of Secrets, mostly those who had no family.

There had been some turmoil and indignation in the HTC over his sudden 'conversion' to Dumbledore's side but that had calmed down after a week or two. Those who didn't like it left but there had been a surprising amount of loyalty towards Harry in the dozens that had stayed. Despite (or maybe because of) Harry's sudden compliance towards the Headmaster, his sway over the school had nearly tripled in magnitude. There was always the whisper of 'he's faking it' from the Hogwarts rumor mill. Dumbledore seemed confident, however, that Harry was not faking it; he had too much confidence in his potion.

Pranks during this time period too had slowed almost to a stop. There had been that one incident where someone had filled the transfiguration classroom with catnip (probably Draco, Harry thought) and a couple other little things but nothing big. Things with Snape seemed to be at a standstill, though the Potions professor was being unusually polite towards Harry. Harry still wasn't sure what to think about it.

Harry was still anxiously awaiting any findings from Luna, even though he knew that she might not find anything until the end of the school year…Or she might never find anything. He had seen her only a handful of times in the whole month and she seemed to have recruited Claire to help her when she wasn't using the spirit to keep an eye on various things.

Still, no matter how calm things were, it was always frustrating not to be able to talk back to Dumbledore. He wasn't in any way _ashamed_ of his acting but acting all the time was tiring. A little voice in the back of his mind was always muttering 'well, why _shouldn't_ I just act how I want to act'. Evan saved his sanity.

Draco and Ginny were both very sympathetic but, really, neither of them understood _why_ he was pretending to be under Dumbledore's thumb. Evan, being almost the same person, knew exactly why he was doing what he was and was fully supportive of it. It was, basically, for Hogwarts. If Harry got rid of Dumbledore now, then a stronger person from the Ministry would probably take over and they'd have Ministry backing; it would be hard to get rid of them. No, it was simpler to wait until Harry had enough control to take over the school himself.

But Evan didn't save Harry's sanity just because he was there to talk to. It was Evan's _identity_ that Harry needed. To be able to become someone else, someone unknown to others…that was what Harry really needed. To talk to someone _without_ the name 'Harry Potter' getting in the way. Nonetheless, Harry was trying not to take Evan's identity too often. He was pretty sure that the spirit resented him for it, even if Evan understood why Harry was taking it.

In the end, Harry was just being selfish.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Christmas spirit had come with the excited buzz of chatter that usually came with the holidays. The castle had been set up with Christmas trees, snowflakes, and a hundred other decorations as the teachers had started getting into the spirit. Finally, most of the students went home for Christmas and the castle was filled with an almost haunting stillness and quiet.

Nineteen students stayed at Hogwarts for Christmas, opposed to the usual six or seven. Thirteen of them were orphans or had their parents at Azkaban. Many other orphans had elected to go home to take care of family affairs or had been invited to live with friends. Harry had never been the only orphan attending Hogwarts but the attacks on Halloween had made the number of orphans at Hogwarts about ten more than had been normal over the past few years. These orphans were also mostly shunned by their houses, since the only corpses from the battle had been Death Eaters. Harry pitied them.

Of the four founders, only Ginny had gone home for the holidays and very much against her will. Mrs. Weasley, however, had always been formidable and when she said that all of her family _must_ be home for Christmas, she made sure that it happened. Harry and Draco, of course, had no family to return to. Luna, however, had decided that the Holidays were a good time to tackle the Hogwarts library, even though Harry offered to lend her as many books as she could carry if she wanted to go home for the holidays.

Harry and Draco were walking around in the dungeons, chatting, each with their familiars nearby (Serphenia was wrapped inside of Harry's robes, avoiding the cold air from the dungeons and Fawkes was flying behind them). There was eventually a pause in conversation and Harry took the opportunity to bring up a topic that he had meant to discuss for some time,

"You do know that we have…" Your mother didn't seem quite tactful enough, especially since Draco had been disinherited months ago (even if he still used Malfoy as his surname), "Mrs. Malfoy down in the Chamber of Secrets?"

Draco was silent for a minute,

"…Yeah, I know."

"Do you want to go see her?"

Draco sighed,

"I don't know."

"Well, I wouldn't know but…It'd be nice to have parents that are alive."

"…Is it? Sometimes I wonder. Ow!" Fawkes had perched on his shoulder and delivered a sharp nip to the Gryffindor founder's ear.

"It's your choice," Harry said, ignoring Fawkes' interruption, "She's been asking for you."

"Huh?"

"I mean a lot of the deserter Death Eaters (I really need to find something else to call them) that have children going to Hogwarts but no other family opted to stay here for the time being, like your mom. They ask for their children from time to time and sometimes I deliver letters for them."

"But I haven't gotten any letters."

"She's written them. She just hasn't had the courage to send them to you. It's one of those noble things, I suppose. Thinking that she's abandoned you and that you'd be better off without her," he made an annoyed noise, "_Gryffindors_."

"Hey, my mom's a Slytherin!"

Harry smirked,

"So it's a bad thing to be a Gryffindor?"

Draco scowled petulantly,

"No! But when you say Gryffindor like _that_…" There was a pause. "Can you…Take me to see her sometime?"

"Well, it'd probably be pretty easy for you to get down there yourself, or I can ask Evan to take you, but I'm taking a group down to the Chamber on Christmas. I've unfinished business down there."

They reached the entrance to the Slytherin common room and pausing only to give the password, the walked inside.

"It's warm!" Draco said happily and then frowned, "I still say that the Gryffindor common room would be warmer."

Harry rolled his eyes,

"It's all the same with a couple of warming charms." He ignored the looks of suspicion from the Slytherins scattered about the room. He counted five, which meant there were three more somewhere about the castle or in their dormitories.

"_You're_ not a Slytherin," one of the girls said accusingly to Harry.

"Oh no, I've been caught!" Harry exclaimed dramatically and hid behind Draco, "Don't let them kill me!"

"You're not allowed in here," The girl said hotly, "Get out!"

"_I_ got here _first_," Harry said haughtily.

The girl spluttered,

"No you didn't! I've been here for hours!"

"Fine," Harry said undeterred, "Then Draco got here first. Right, Draco?"

"Uh…What?"

"At the beginning of the school year. You came to Hogwarts before all of us in the Hogwarts express, right?"

"Um, yeah, but I didn't actually go to the dormitories; a house elf came and took away all my luggage."

"Well, fine but…"

"_Salazar_, you're annoying," Blaise Zabini exclaimed and Harry was confused for a minute before realizing that Blaise had used his name in the way that wizards used Merlin or Muggles God. That was…Slightly disturbing. "Anyways, Rosier, they're all right. Potter…" He paused, looking at Draco warily, "Um, is Malfoy all right?"

Draco had succumbed to a fit of stifled giggles,

"I'd forgotten that…Slytherins…Nowadays said things…like that!" He exclaimed between giggles.

"It's okay; he's usually like this. I think."

Draco started laughing harder,

"Imagine…_Snape_ saying…"

Finally the giggles quieted and the protests from the Rosier girl died down and Harry and Draco started a game of Gobstones. Gobstones, it turned out (Harry had never played before and Salazar had never heard of it), was a strange game that could only be described as a _wizarding_ form of checkers. It was wizarding because it made absolutely no sense until Harry had been playing for at least half an hour. The rules were numerous and seemingly ridiculous and the ways the pieces moved were completely bizarre.

Needless to say, Harry lost the first game and many times had been force to dodge just in time to avoid a face full of some foul-smelling goop.

"I'm pretty sure that's cheating," a first-year who had protested Harry's presence piped up from across the common room, "You're supposed to get hit with the liquid. A penalty, you know, for loosing points."

"Sadist," Harry muttered without heart. After their initial arguments, he and the rest of the Slytherins were getting along remarkably well, considering that he was a Gryffindor that had recently pledged his alliance to Dumbledore.

"So, anyways," Draco said, setting out the board for their second game, "What was that 'unfinished business' you were mentioning earlier? Or would you rather not talk about it?" An unspoken 'here' ended the sentence. Of course the middle of the Slytherin common room wasn't the best place to discuss plots.

"Well, I was planning to try and salvage potions ingredients from the basilisk's corpse in the Chamber of Secrets," Harry said bluntly.

Draco looked at him in horror,

"But she…You…She was Salazar Slytherin's familiar!"

"Yeah, well, she's dead, isn't she?" Serphenia hissed and Harry petted her head, "I've talked to Serphenia about this. All the snakes would agree; they're not so attached to bodies as humans are. She was a thousand-year-old basilisk; any ingredients from her would be priceless. And you really can't let the body rot down there, not with the way I've been trying to clean the place up."

He'd been so absorbed in his little speech that he didn't dodge the Gobstone goop in time; it got in his hair.

"Yuck," Harry said, using a quick _Scourgify_ to clean up the mess, "You think this is Stinksap? From a Mimbulus mimbletonia? 'Cause Neville had one of those last year the goo it spewed was a lot like this. Wonder if I can get Neville to give me any Stinksap…"

Draco shrugged,

"How would I know? But this is a pretty cheap set, to just let you vanish the stuff like that. Most Gobstone sets have charms against cleaning the stuff up; makes the game more 'fun'."

"Oh, this one does too," Harry assured him, "The goop is some sort of potion or another. I think it reacts violently to being cleaned up. I was just wondering if the main ingredient was Stinksap."

"Then why didn't it work?" the first-year asked curiously.

"Oh, lots of potions won't work on me. I mean, magic in general is sometimes pretty strange around me. I've heard it has something to do with willpower; I mean…I can resist an _Imperius_ so I've got a decent amount of it.

"Anyhow," Harry continued, standing up, "Gobstones is stupid. Let's go outside; there should be enough snow for a snowman…Or a snowball fight."

"Okay," Draco said, also standing up. At the entrance to the common room, they nearly walked right into Snape, who was coming in.

Snape raised an eyebrow,

"What are you doing in the Slytherin common room, Potter?"

"Playing Gobstones," Harry said airily and walked right past the man. Draco hurriedly greeted Snape and then ran out after Harry.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

I'm running out of prank ideas again. So, any suggestions:D

Also, phoeinxlove pointed out that in my list of spells, each founder had an element more or less assigned to them (Godric fire, Rowena water, Helga earth, Salazar air) and asked whether it was intentional. Yes, it was mostly intentional in that I aimed for each Founder's spells to have mostly a certain personality. I'm very flattered that you pointed it out. For example, Helga's spells were definitely focused on earth and I specifically made fire spells for Godric; even Rowena got a few water-based spells. For specifically Rowena and Salazar, however, I tried to make more of a broad base with an added emphasis on 'useful' spells; mostly binding for Salazar and psychological spells for Rowena. Also, as I've pointed out, Godric gets such 'righteous' spells as 'white slaughterhouse' or 'divine massacre'; Helga get one too, 'terrible justice'.

Review?


	29. Christmas Chances

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

::Mindspeech::

-Parseltongue-

**Chapter Twenty-Nine: Christmas Chances**

"Merry Christmas!" The voice, entirely too loud, cheerful, and close to his ear woke Harry up instantly. If the voice had belonged to anyone he didn't know, he would have been out of bed in an instant, wand in hand. As it was…

"Thought you weren't a morning person…" Harry mumbled, rolling over in bed.

"But its _Christmas_," Draco said childishly and bounced on Harry's bed.

"Stop it!" Harry said after the sixth bounce, having bounced nearly off his own bed, "Should I even bother to ask how you got up here?" 

"I made the Gryffindor tower; of course I can go here whenever I want."

Harry opened his eyes blearily and wasn't surprised to see that it was still dark outside,

"Yeah, but it's not like any of the other Gryffindors would just let you walk up here."

"They must have been asleep," Draco shrugged, "There's only two of them. Anyways, come on! We've got to go drag Re'na away from her books."

"Is that even possible? And, anyways, what would you have done if one of the Gryffindors found you breaking into their common room?"

"Blame it on you," Draco said and shrugged. Bouncing impatiently, he demanded, "Get up!"

Yawning, Harry sat up reluctantly,

"Fine, fine, I'm getting up."

Harry got ready and the two of them made their way to Ravenclaw tower, Draco bouncing every step of the way. Once there, however, they ran into a problem,

"Uh…" Harry said, looking at the statue that guarded the entrance to the Ravenclaw common room, "I don't suppose you know the password…?" The statue remained motionless.

Draco shrugged,

"How would I know? I don't suppose you have one of your special Parseltongue passwords?"

"Nope; can't get into any place that 'Salazar' didn't directly make. How about…"

"How about you knock and see if anyone will let you in?" A voice interrupted them from the door. Harry turned to see Lisa Turpin standing where the statue had previously been, looking faintly amused. "You're looking for Lovegood, right? Wait here, I'll go get her."

"Creepy girl," Draco said, "If I didn't already know that Luna was Re'na…"

"Eerie resemblance isn't it," Harry agreed.

"Oh, I don't know…She's a lot smaller than me, isn't she?" Luna commented vaguely.

"Re'na!" Draco exclaimed happily, "We were just looking for you!"

Luna smiled,

"I'd noticed."

"Well, what are you waiting for, then? Let's open presents!"

Harry muttered something about Gryffindors but Luna said,

"Oh, but we can't open them here. Lisa's spending time with her boyfriend. How about the Gryffindor common room?"

"But we just came from there!" Draco protested

"Well, Slytherin and Hufflepuff are a lot farther. Not to mention that the dungeons are always cold and it'd be strange going to Hufflepuff without Ginny here," Luna pointed out sensibly

"Fine," Draco pouted.

They returned to the Gryffindor common room to find that the other two Gryffindors staying for the holidays were already awake.

"What're _they_ doing here?" A fifth year asked grumpily, wiping sleep from his eyes.

"Don't be that way, Hooper," Harry said cheerfully, "It's Christmas! You can't turn 'em strays out and make 'em fend for themselves! Really, have a heart!"

Hooper squinted at Harry,

"Shut up, Potter. It's too early in the morning to deal with you."

Harry sighed,

"And here I thought all Gryffindors were nice and cheerful on Christmas."

"Hey," Hooper exclaimed, brightening, "It _is_ Christmas, isn't it?"

"Presents," another boy agreed.

"I've never had a Christmas at Hogwarts before," Hooper said excitedly, "How does it work? I left my presents on my bed but…We can just open our presents whenever, whenever?"

"Yup," Harry said, "House-elves should put your presents wherever you want to open them."

"How do they know where that is?" Hooper asked wide-eyed.

Harry shrugged,

"Magic. Or something."

"Cool! Hey, Andrew, lets open our presents in the Transfiguration classroom!"

The fifth-years left quickly. As soon as they were gone, Draco pounced upon his presents, which had appeared under the large Christmas tree, courtesy the house-elves,

"Mine!"

Harry sighed,

"Gryffindors…"

"Here!" Draco was eagerly sorting the presents, "This one's yours…mine…Re'na's…mine…yours…yours…Re'na's…where…? Oh, here it is…mine…"

In what seemed like no time at all, all the presents were unwrapped and they were sitting in a nest of wrapping paper. Fawkes and Serphenia had joined them, Fawkes taking delight in setting random pieces of wrapping paper on fire and Serphenia burrowing under all of the discarded wrapping paper.

Harry had been pleased to receive two heavy potions tomes and another thick book of modern spells that also had a whole section dedicated to pranking, as well as a set of nicely balanced throwing-knifes that weren't as flashy or easily identifiable as Salazar's daggers. From Neville, he had received a nice collection of home-grown plants that were useful in potion-making. He had also received a large box of prank items from Fred and George and a couple of cookies from Mrs. Weasley but not the usual Weasley sweater. There also didn't seem to be anything from Ron or Hermione, not that he had been expecting anything.

"Ooh, _nice_…" Draco had opened his present from Luna. Weapons seemed to be her theme of the year and, while Harry's new knifes were nondescript in appearance, the sword that Draco unwrapped was dazzling: gold in color and with ornate phoenixes in a subtly redder gold decorating the handle. A small pile of books lay at his side, forgotten.

"Gryffindors are flashy," Luna said quietly, her nose deep in the book of riddles that Harry had bought her (he thought that, since she was already buying herself all the research books she needed with his money, he might as well buy her a fun book), "At least this way I can appease his Gryffindor pride without decorating it with lions and rubies…I'm sure you, at least, can appreciate subtlety in your weapons." The last comment was directed at Harry.

"They're _really_ nice," Harry said, grinning, "They'd be even better if I were into assassination."

Luna rolled her eyes,

"Yeah, yeah. I gave them to you with the sole intention of finishing Voldemort off once and for all," she said sarcastically and turned back to her book.

"C'mon, c'mon!" Draco said eagerly, pulling at Harry's sleeve, "I wanna try it out. _Please?_"

"No," Harry said flatly. Draco looked crestfallen. "Oh, come on…Fine, how about this: we go to the Room of Requirements and have the Room conjure you up an opponent and Luna and I can read our nice new books until we have to go to the Chamber?"

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

_Excerpts from the Daily Prophet, December 25 1996, as written by Rita Skeeter_

_Today crowds of wizards and witches flock to the Ministry of Magic to see that justice has, finally, been done…_

…_The poor souls that have been locked away for nearly two months for, incredibly, crimes that they were not guilty of are today finally sent home to spend Christmas with their families. Already family, friends, and well-wishers have gathered at the Ministry to watch them receive full pardons from the ministry…_

…_In an inadequately touching movement, Minister Fudge has awarded each of these innocents a handful of galleons in a clumsy attempt to make up for the months of their lives now gone… _

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Approximately two dozen people appeared in the Chamber of Secrets over the course of an hour or so via the Portkeys that Harry had sent out. Once done with the lengthy process of interrogating each and every one of them with truth serum, they were all allowed into the area where about a dozen renegade Death Eaters now lived.

Smiling at the reunited families, Harry turned to leave, gently placing Serphenia on the ground as he did so. She would be able to make sure that anything didn't happen and, really, she didn't need to be there while Harry cut apart her old body. She probably didn't think any more of it then a shed skin but, still…

"So," Draco said, having yet to leave Harry's side, "Looks like you _are_ putting this place to good use. And here I'd thought that it'd be all creepy and gloomy, like your dungeons."

"Well, this is what the Chamber was built for, after all."

"…Social events?" Draco guessed.

Harry rolled his eyes,

"Sanctuary."

"Oh," Draco said, "I suppose that makes sense."

"Well, go find your mom," Harry said, shooing the blond towards the middle of the room, "I've got a dead basilisk to clean up."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Ginny sat on her bed, her knees pulled up to her chin, staring out of her small window gloomily. She was really starting to wish that she had refused to come home for the holidays (well, she _had_ at first, but it hadn't done much good). The…_normality…_of home was too much for her, after all that had been happening recently. She didn't _belong_ any more.

That warm glow of cheerfulness downstairs…she couldn't _stand_ it, though she knew she should have been able to. She loved her family dearly but she _hated_ Ron and everything he had done and Hermione with him (a stranger, not actually family, didn't belong). And Ginny couldn't look around the table without noticing the spot were _Percy_ had used to sit, where Hermione sat now. Percy who had betrayed his own family (and Harry) for the Ministry.

All in all it seemed like her _other_ family at Hogwarts must have had a more enjoyable Christmas than Ginny. She smiled in fond remembrance of the gifts that they had sent her, the only bright point of the holidays. The Hufflepuff founder had received several useful things from her friends (books on pranking, books on Herbology, various enchanted knickknacks…) but by far her favorite present was the beautiful quarterstaff that had been a present to her from Luna.

Made of dark wood, the heavy weapon had definitely been specially-made; the swirling patter of inlaid silver and handful of imbedded gems emphasized this fact. It was not the sort of last-minute thing to have been slapped together with magic. No, this was a thing created to last, and a piece of art in its own right. It must have cost a small fortune; but then the Lovegoods were an old, rich family, if not particularly respectably by modern pureblood ideals.

Of course, the Weasley family had always done well without money, making up for it with love and loyalty. But Ginny felt that all of that was breaking up. Percy had left and it seemed as though Ron was taking bribes (if not of money, of reputation) from Dumbledore to alter his loyalties. And then the horrible, horrible suspicion had started to spread through her mind. If two of her brothers could be made to do such things, what of her other family…?

"Knock knock," came a quiet voice from the doorway. Ginny started, having not heard anyone approach or, indeed, the door open. She looked up to see Fred and George enter the room stealthily, closing the door quietly behind them.

They each gave her a huge grin and the one on the right started (Ginny still couldn't tell them apart reliably, though she thought it might have been George),

"What's the matter, Gin-Gin?" Ginny didn't answer, staring determinedly at the wall just right of the speaker's ear.

"You've been hiding again, sister dearest."

"We know something's bothering you."

"Why don't you tell us?"

"Nothing's the matter," Ginny said firmly.

"Don't lie to us," Fred (or was he George?) wheedled.

"Remember when you were seven?"

"And you had your birthday party ruined when cousin Mafalda went and insulted your favorite robes?"

"And we came over to cheer you up?"

"You're acting just like you were then…"

"All alone in your room…"

"With your lights out…"

"And all the rest of the family downstairs…"

"And some wondering where you've gotten off to…"

"Except that time you were crying…"

"Shut up!" Ginny snapped, angrily flinging your pillow at the twins. Immediately afterward she regretted breaking your silence.

"Now, I don't know what you have against Ronniekins," Fred (who was possibly George) said seriously, "But that's no reason to go around ignoring the rest of us. I know Bill and Charlie are really missing their baby sister, even if Mum and Dad are usually too busy dealing with the fuss that Ron and Hermione are kicking up to count one less Weasley."

"Don't hog the monologue," the other twin complained, swatting Fred (who possibly wasn't), "Anyways, what he means to say is that you can tell us what's wrong…"

"And I swear, we won't laugh that hard at all…"

"Just tell us."

Ginny frowned, still not looking either twin in the eye,

"I don't…Ron is being…" The twins watched patiently as Ginny struggled with words, "He _betrayed_ Harry!"

"Ah," the twin who she thought was George said wisely, "So that's what this is."

"Young love," the twin who she thought was Fred sighed.

"No!" Ginny protested angrily, "See? That's not what this is about at all! It's because Harry is a _friend_ and practically _family_. Ron was Harry's best friend! How can anyone do that?"

"So how exactly has foolish Ronniekins wronged your charming prince?"

"What I did or said when I was younger has nothing to do with this. Nor does who I _liked_ when I was younger," She put a firm emphasis on the past tense, "What Ron did was sell out his best friend for a couple of galleons and prestige in Dumbledore's eyes; enough to get him a bit of extra training with some of the Order." The last part was spat with a vicious triumph; she knew that the twins liked Harry just as much as she did.

George (who might have been Fred) raised an eyebrow,

"Ronniekins did that?"

Fred (who might have been George) frowned,

"That's not right."

"Aren't they friends?"

"You've been out of contact with the Hogwarts grapevine for too long," Ginny said, "And Ron's been censoring his letters home; out of embarrassment, I bet. Harry had a big falling out with Ron and Hermione at the beginning of the school year. Went and sat himself at the Slytherin table and refused to speak a civil word to either one of them."

"With the Slytherins?" George (who mightn't have been) looked alarmed, "Is he…"

"He's still _Harry_," Ginny said, annoyed, "He's just fed up with the way Gryffindor's been treating him. And with good reason."

"Huh," both twins seemed to be rolling the idea around in their minds.

"Doesn't matter, I suppose," Fred (who mightn't have been) declared carelessly.

"At least we know that he has an opportunity to put his Christmas present to good use."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Severus Snape wasn't a friendly person. As such, he didn't have many friends. And because he didn't have many friends, he never got many gifts for Christmas. Thus, he didn't bother with the normal excitement that came with the holidays and instead dedicated his time to potions.

True to usual standards, he had stayed up late on Christmas Eve with his potions and hadn't woken up until late the following morning. Awakening finally, he stumbled out of bed and went about his usual morning routine. It wasn't until he left his bedroom and saw the rather gaudily decorated Christmas tree that the House Elves had put up that he realized what today really was.

It wasn't a ground-breaking revelation by any means (what did it matter to him what day it was?) and the only thing that happened in result of this discovery was that, eating breakfast, he walked over to the tree to relieve it of its meager boon. There was a somewhat obscure potions book that he hadn't ever bothered getting for himself as a combined present from the rest of the Hogwarts staff (with a decorated card from Minerva) and a present from his godson, as usual. How strange; Draco's gift seemed to have two cards attached.

Not concerning himself overly much with the abnormality, Snape opened the first card, which was a dark green bordered with gold and with a gold snake centered on the front of the card that was enchanted to move. It was standard pureblood stuff and he was sure that this was the card from his godson.

_Merry Christmas, Professor!  
_

_I wasn't sure if this gift was okay but I was assured that it was a good gift, so __I'm__ not to blame. Anyways, Luna and Ginny asked me to pass along a 'Merry Christmas' from them. _

_Draco_

Satisfied (though with a feeling of foreboding from the first sentence of the card) he moved onto the other card. This was striped diagonally with large bars of red and green and had a Muggle logo on the back. It was an ordinary card (though Muggle) and a few quick magical scans also indicated nothing out of the ordinary. He opened it carefully. It was blank.

Slightly unsettled, he peeled the wrapping paper away from the box and then stopped, shocked. Inside the wrapping paper was a glass box and inside the box was a brilliantly orange and black striped snake with three heads. Dimly, Snape became aware of a hissing conversation.

-What have I told you,- The head on Snape's right was hissing, -About being stupid?-

The snake in the middle was hissing angrily.

-Remember, _he_ told us that we couldn't harm each other,- The snake on the hissed said calmly, -_He_ said it makes us less valuable.-

-He said we were valuable,- preened the head in the middle.

-And _He_ told us not to speak of _Him_ so shut up!- The head on the right hissed irritably.

-Why does it matter; none of those stupid humans can understand us, except for the Stained one and _Him_.-

-Wouldn't it be wonderful if we were found by a Speaker?- The middle head asked in a dreamy voice.

-Stop talking!- the right head snapped, -Haven't either of you noticed the human in front of us?- As one, all three heads froze, then all burst into hissing exclamations.

-He's just some stupid human!-

-He might be one of those nonhuman Speakers you hear about sometimes…-

-How can you be so _stupid_ so as not to notice?-

-You only just noticed, you…-

-Or he could be one of those, uh, snake people…-

-That's a _legend!_-

Snape could feel a headache starting. Still, Runespoors were rare and valuable in potion making. A mixed blessing of sorts. He picked up the box and moved it to a table; he'd find a better place for it (He? She? Them?) later, maybe even talk to it. For now…Well, he still had a couple potions to work on.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Now that his friend had left, Draco wondered around the Chamber aimlessly. Well, that was not technically true; he did, after all, have some sort of _aim_ but as he was avoiding that at the moment…He glanced around cautiously, all-too-aware that many of the people gathered around him were the same people that he had expected to stab him in his sleep at the beginning of the school year.

"Draco?"

The muffled gasp behind him almost failed to catch his attention. In fact, he wouldn't have noticed it at all if he hadn't been hypersensitive to the imagined danger around him. Turning, Draco gave an awkward grin,

"Hi mum."

Narcissa Malfoy had her hands over her mouth and her eyes were filling with tears. Draco silently appraised her and realized that he had never seen his mom looking so thin or tired. It was new, this way of looking at this woman (his _mother_) coldly, appraisingly. He supposed that since Godric had had a separate set of parents, his mom wasn't his only mom any more, even if he loved her dearly. She had her flaws, he was finally able to acknowledge, and one of them was that she had allowed her husband to disinherit their only son during the previous summer.

"I…" Draco's mom cut herself off with a strangled choke-sob, "How have you been?"

"I've been pretty good. Professor Snape took me in for the summer and I made friends with Harry Potter," he gave a casual shrug, "I suppose that in some way I've never been better."

"I…I see. I'm glad that you found yourself a strong friend. You…You were never quite as adept at politics as…your father was."

"Life's not about politics," Draco said; a hint of coldness in his voice.

"No, I suppose it isn't," Narcissa agreed softly and then she suddenly burst out, "I'm so _sorry_ Draco!"

Unnerved at the way his normally stoic mother was acting, Draco hastened to say,

"There's nothing to be sorry about."

"But there is…So much…" And with that, Draco's mother completely lost herself to sobs. More unnerved than ever before, Draco attempt to pat her on the back. Though the end result was awkward and weak in the extreme, it seemed to calm his mother somewhat. Was this the position that Harry fount himself in, time and time again? But in his case, Godric had seriously wronged Salazar…

"Uh, Merry Christmas?" Draco hazarded.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Moody took a long swig from his hipflask as he watched the proceedings from his seat at the teacher's table of the Great Hall. That is, he watched the ceremony from the back side of things. The normally impressive Heir Crowning ceremony of Hogwarts (this, he suspected, was made up entirely within the last few generations of Headmasters) was presented towards the student body which, in this case, was less than twenty students spread thin about the four huge house tables.

Needless to say, the grandeur of the ceremony was somewhat lost. Even the main characters in this little play (Potter and Malfoy) seemed bored to death. The majority of the reduced student body seemed more interested in when their grand Christmas feast would begin than the ceremony itself. Moody suspected that if Dumbledore had decided to have the feast laid out during or before the ceremony itself (which was the usual plan), the ceremony would have not been noticed at all by any person in the hall but the most active participants in it.

The ex-Auror took another long swig, cursing himself for not having filled it with alcohol beforehand, as he had taken to do for most Ministry events. As it was, only water met his lips. Cursing himself again, he turned his mind inward, away from the ceremony. What was his current most valued puzzle? Why the enigma Evan, of course. That would make a good distraction from the matters at hand, anyways.

Moody himself had gotten a present from the kid. Pure cheek, though Moody flattered himself to imagine that a bit of admiration had played its part there. It was a little metal orb of the type that he could easily hide on his person and did the work of about half of Moody's various Dark Arts detectors combined. It detected potions in food, magic being performed, specifically Dark Arts being performed, Dark creatures, animals that were animagus in disguise, and a whole slew of other things, not to mention that it had half a dozen powerful protection charms woven into it; and those were just the functions that Moody had already discovered in the few hours that he'd had the thing!

The only downside was that it probably didn't work at all against Evan (or any of his associates). Also, the gift was untraceable, as it was entirely made of magic, so there were no purchases to trace, and the maker's magical signature itself was entirely gone due to some twisting of magic that he knew Evan was entirely responsible for. The only clue one might gain from it was the mentality of the gift-giver.

What motive could there be for such a gift? Evan was either worried about Moody's safety or he wanted to make Moody's equipment so obsolete that he discarded some of them. Perhaps Moody had some Dark Arts detector that was of particular effectiveness against the enigma? Yet he couldn't bring himself to believe it. Was the boy honestly worried about him? Moody made a noise of distaste; he wasn't so old that he couldn't take care of himself. Yet that was probably it; cheeky in the extreme, perhaps, but the boy was of the type that could be said to have a 'good heart'. What use that would be to him, Moody didn't know.

Lupin, too, had received a similar present; a small piece of amber set in gold with a loop in the metal that obviously indicated that it was to be worn with some type of cord or chain. Moody could put that one down with utmost certainty to worry for the werewolf's wellbeing. A gap in one's memory, no matter how small, did tend to make one vulnerable to some extent. And whoever Evan had been in Lupin's past, he now had some responsibility (if not friendship) towards Lupin.

He dimly noticed that Potter and Malfoy had duly received their medals (each with some amount of distaste on his face when the Headmaster wasn't looking) and then made their way over to the Lovegood girl, who was sitting at the Ravenclaw table (as was her place; though not theirs).

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Christmas was over, Evan acknowledged with a sigh. Well, it had been fun while it lasted. The humans hadn't really _acknowledged _the spirits over the holiday, too busy in their own holiday cheer to bother trying to drag the nonhumans into the celebrations for more than a couple minutes. Not that any of the spirits had really minded; they'd set up their own celebration of sorts in an obscure classroom.

Though there was technically two hours of Christmas left, the Luna and Claire had both decided to get back to their research and so both factions of Founders had further split up. Evan, still in good cheer from the earlier celebrations, had offered to grab some books for the Ravenclaws as they went through the books they already had, as only Harry and Evan really knew what they were researching (apart from the researchers themselves, obviously).

Harry, being human, couldn't get through the wards to the Restricted Section without alerting the Headmaster. Old though they might have been, Rowena's wards (unlike Godric's) held against the force of time; strengthened by countless generations of librarians who each had known truly formidable curses. Harry could probably get through them with some little difficulty but not without risking a limb or two unless he went and tore them all down (and he really didn't want to do something like that).

Consequently it was Evan who was walking through the dark and deserted hallways, in his arms a stack of books so tall that he walked with miniscule steps so as not to send them all crashing to the floor. Without magic, of course. He was still too young a spirit for using magic to be such a small thing. Still, old books were as heavy as new ones and even with inhuman strength it was tiring work. He also happened to know that amongst the many books in the stack, there were several cursed to make a racket if opened before he could get them to a Ravenclaw. If he dropped one of those books…

"What are you doing will all of those books?" The voice was obviously amused.

Evan just barely stopped himself from whirling around with the reminder that dropping the large pile of books would be very, very bad. Some of the books wobbled slightly and he cursed fluently in Parseltongue as he tried to steady the pile. He was successful but his cursing merely grew more colorful when he realized that the person standing behind him could understand said curses.

Finally, done swearing, Evan remarked coldly,

"Stealing them, obviously. Anyways, I've nothing to say to you," and continued down the corridor, wishing that his steps could be just a bit longer. He had no doubt that he looked ridiculous and wanted to be as far away from Snape as soon as possible.

Snape for his part watched Evan leave but just as Evan was rounding the corner called out,

"Evan!"

Evan stiffened and stopped, this time managing not to disturb the pile of books he carried,

"I think you should know that I'm not Harry Potter."

"I know that," Snape said, sounding frustrated, "I think. But you're _Evan_, even if he is still…I don't know. Maybe I _would_ know if you'd just _tell_ me something!"

"That's not about to happen," Evan said unemotionally, "Now if you're done harassing me…?" He started his slow progress again.

Snape sprinted a couple feet to catch up, so that Evan didn't leave his sight,

"Isn't there at least anything I can do?!"

"…Yeah, sure. Can you put a spell on these books so they can't fall down? And make them lighter while you're doing that."

Snape did these things and then, sensing the spirit's mood, left without another word. Evan watched him leave, slightly impressed.

::You know, Harry, I think Snape's getting pretty sincere…::

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

So to elaborate on my most recent plea for prank ideas: I was wondering if you had any songs that you found particularly fitting in some way or another. Like my Dumble-bee song and my adoption of Davy Crockett…I was wondering if there were other interesting ideas floating out there. Or other pranks; the more ideas, the better. But it's not that important, so don't feel bad if you've nothing to contribute or if you don't want to :D

I'm…Really behind. Eek. Lets see if I can make the last several thousand words…


	30. Dear Readers

Dear Readers,

Hello everyone, remember me?

I'm extremely sorry that I left you all hanging for so long! However for the last couple chapters I've found myself disgusted with my writing. Oh, I have excuses too, tons of them, but I won't waste your time with all of them. Just know that my computer died a gruesome death multiple times and I went out of country (and without computer) for a long vacation. I've been out of the Harry Potter fandom for an extended period of time, so my muses had no inspiration; also, there are so few Salazar!Harry fics being written out there, which have always been my muses main food source. When I read about Salazar, I want to write about Salazar. Harry, however, is so multifaceted in fanfiction that reading about him doesn't have the same effect (and Slytherin!Harry doesn't really count).

For a long time, I haven't been able to stand looking at Dark Angel, let alone writing it. In many ways I still can't. Don't worry, I'm not abandoning you, but it seems that it's (finally) time for a rewrite.

I'm going to post the rewrite as a separate story, since the chapters shouldn't line up at all. I'll also be using a new title, which is at this point Understanding Backwards (this is a warning for those who only have Dark Angel on story alert); I was going to make it a cute matching name but I couldn't think of one. I'm giving myself a deadline of one week to post the first chapter/prologue of the rewrite so check back then…but you might want to cross your fingers if you really want me to make it on time.

Betas needed for idea-bouncing, brit-picking, nitpicking, etc.

The rest of this is about possible changes to the story that I want your opinion on; skip if you have no interest.

I'm considering taking some elements out of my story, such as the cutting. I've always neglected that part of the plot and, anyways, I was no good at writing it. I'm not sure that Salazar will be at all suicidal, either, but I'm still trying to iron out his character. Don't worry; lots of the angst will still be there; I thrive off of betrayal and secrets in a plot. However, I'm also thinking of taking out the whole Dark Angel part of the plot as well as a few of Harry's powers connected to it. They seem highly superfluous (though there are some small scenes later on that revolve around them) and too Gary Stu. Please give your opinion; since Dark Angel _is_ the title, I'm a bit hesitant to take it out. Also, recent parts of my plot, such as the shadow or Halloween, may or may not appear in the rewrite at all, so don't expect them. I'm tentatively offering to remove Ginny from the founders, since so many of you seem to hate her so much. I refuse to hate Ginny, even though I don't like the ending of the series any more than any of you do.

Remember that I have last say on all of these matters (some things I've almost decided on already) but your input really matters to me. I'm writing for you all just as much as I'm writing for me. Lots of things _aren't_ decided yet. Please give me feedback on anything I just mentioned, or anything in my story you liked or dislike. This is your last chance to make me correct anything that you didn't like about Dark Angel: anything you had a hard time believing, contradictions, etc. Did you think any part was boring? Unnecessary? Abrupt? Anything you _don't_ want changed?

I really want to give more character depth to the founders as well as the other characters. I also want to try to avoid bashing characters. Characters such as Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore, and the Sorting Hat might still be disliked by Harry but I want to tone down the hate.

~Nephy

Teaser: the beginning should be fun, since it'll all be new. Or you could all hate it, since it'll all be new.


End file.
